Only We Know
by Exactlyamanda
Summary: Luna Broderick is a telepath, born with the secret ability to read the thoughts of everyone around her. Starting her senior year at Sweet Amoris High, she is shocked to meet the first person she can't see right through: the mysterious Lysander, who may be hiding secrets of his own. Brought together by secrets, the world that only they know may be torn apart by secrets, too.
1. Prologue

**Only We Know**

**Part I**

**Luna Broderick is a telepath, born with the ability to read the deepest, innermost thoughts of everyone she meets. So why can't she read Lysander?**

* * *

**Prologue**

I can't remember a time when I didn't hear people's thoughts. My father tells me that I was two.

He prayed that I wouldn't retain his gift and wished a normal life for his only daughter but he wasn't surprised when he sang my favorite lullaby in his head and I laughed along the entire time.

Telepathy is hereditary, or so he tells me.

My father has always tried to protect me but dealing with the gift at such a young age appropriately is practically impossible. There are many rules and techniques that people with telepathy are expected to learn and live by; the most important rule being that we must never under any circumstances share our gift with the modern world. They just don't understand.

_I learned that lesson the hard way. _

My mother wasn't like us. She was one of the lucky ones who could live her life under the false pretense that everyone in this world is created equally. At five years old I couldn't understand that her blind eye was a precious thing. If I had, she would probably still be here. She would probably still love me.

She left us when I was five and it was _my_ fault. I can still remember the day because it left a hole in my heart that still burdens me, stinging silently whenever her name is brought up. Father has tried to help me overcome the guilt but no matter what he says I know that the blame is mine and mine alone and I carry that blame with me every day.

I can remember my mother's thoughts from that day. She was thinking about my birthday and the doll house she had seen at the store. I remember that I could feel her excitement as she thought about how much I would love it.

Excitedly I repeated, word for word, the secret thoughts in her head and I can still remember her face as it twisted in horror.

My father tells me that he tried to reason with her. He tried to explain our gifts to her the best he could and even showed her his telepathy for the first time; a forbidden act. My mother was too close-minded. In her world, people like us just couldn't exist. The truth around her clashed with her own convenient truths in an impact greater than her own sanity could handle. She left without saying goodbye. I don't know where she is today but I do hope that wherever she is, she is happy.

I didn't understand why life decided to be so cruel to me then. Now I realize it was to teach me the importance of keeping my gift a secret.

'Gift' is the word my father uses to describe our telepathy. I prefer to think of it as a curse but he has always been so admimant on teaching me to embrace and protect it. It makes me who I am, he says. He also cherishes the gift because it allows us to see people for who they really are. That is where I feel it has cursed me the most.

I try to use my telepathy as little as possible and my father has taught me to 'tune out', as he calls it. Tuning out is a gift in itself and after years of practice I've finally mastered the technique completely. Tuning out gives me the ability to practically shut my telepathy off, allowing me to focus only on the thoughts that I wish to hear- if any. It's almost like I can pretend I'm just like everyone else; _almost_.

I've also learned to block my thoughts. Blocking is something we do to keep other telepaths out of our minds and father says that it is the ultimate protection but it's really only useful for when I'm thinking things that I don't want my father to hear. It would be a whole lot more useful though if there were any other telepaths to speak of. I'm being a little dramatic though- according to my father there are over nine thousand telepaths in the world that are accounted for through some secret extensive database put together by centuries of telepaths with too much time on their hands.

In a world of seven billion people though, telepathy is hard to come by these days; so rare in fact that telepathy is still a carefully shrouded secret.

World leaders and public icons who think they know everything haven't even scratched the surface. Never has it been studied by world-renowned neurologists or questioned by skeptics and philosophers. The world of telepathy is apparently a very paranoid one and father says that it is a heavily kept secret because many believe that if the government ever caught wind of our abilities we would all be rounded up and tested on. Maybe it is better this way. The world seems to constantly ruin new and exciting things.

My father will make sure that this world doesn't ruin me if it's the last thing he does. Ever since before I can remember he has protected me fiercely.

Father has worked from home for as long as I can remember for a company in a big city in New Jersey. His job has allowed him to home school to protect me from the cruel thoughts of other children my age. As much as I enjoy not having to trudge to some rundown brick building every morning for school my father's coddling has sheltered me my entire life and as a result I've never had a single friend. Sure, there have been kids my age come to the Southern California beach where we live on vacation. They would stay for a few days and follow me around, searching for tide pools and hermit crabs but when the vacation ended they would go back home and I'd stay here. I do love it here though. It's all I've ever known.

We've lived here by the ocean my whole life but now my vacation is ending. My father got a promotion from the company in New Jersey.

The promotion is great but the catch is that we must pack up our life here and move across country so that he can be closer to the city and work in the office. Since accepting the promotion my father has swapped our beach front house for a quaint two bedroom in a landlocked town called Amoris. He'll working long days at his new job, forcing me to start my senior year at a public high school.

Why life or his job couldn't wait one more year to change my life so drastically I do not know. I am not a believer in destiny but I try to keep my mind open. In truth, I am dreading it every single day.

I've never really interacted with other kids my age in an environment like high school and from what I have seen on TV it's not a very pleasant place to be. I don't dress like a normal teenager, I don't walk or talk like a normal teenager, and I certainly don't think like a normal teenager either.

My father keeps trying to tell me that I'm a normal girl and that I will be just fine in highschool but the point is plain to see and simple as any.

I am not a normal girl.

* * *

**A/N: This story is a spin-off from my CastielxOC fanfiction What You Do To Me- which means characters from that fanfaction will be back in this story, but I believe you will still be able to follow without many questions if you never read it.**

**Disclaimer: **My Candy Love is owned by Beemov Games Network and ChiNoMiko, not me. I'm jealous, yes, but I am NOT taking credit for their incredible characters. No copyright infringement is intended whatsoever. I do however own Luna and Brooke and I work super dooper hard to perfectly develop my characters and plot line so please, no duplicating, plagerism, or copying. Thanks!


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One: Fly Away**

The sweet chill of the ocean waves as they scurried across the sand reaching up and tickling my bare, sand covered toes was enough to make me want to cry. I wiped at my silent tears, laying back down in the sand and feeling it's cool embrace around me. It's always been this way. I couldn't imagine a life any different.

I didn't care that the sand was becoming tangled in my hair. I wanted it to stay there forever, it's bothersome itch against my scalp serving as a reminder of where I came from.

I have many friends here. Not in the beachgoers and tourists but in the red crabs that scamper at my feet and the gulls that soar above my head. I often followed them as they flew, wishing I could sprout wings and fly along side them.

Now, there wasn't a time in my life that I wished I could fly away more. The sea birds were my most cherished friends. Their echoing calls had been my lullabies as I laid in bed at night, accompanying the crashing waves as the soundtrack to my life.

It would be so different living without the ocean all around me. I had never even left California before. I hardly even left this town.

'_I know you're upset, Luna…'_ I heard, the echo of his thoughts rattling in my mind.

The sensation of hearing another person's innermost thoughts was nothing new to me. In fact, my father and I communicated in thoughts more than we did in words.

I turned around to see him walking down the steps and onto the sand towards me. If I hadn't read his thoughts I wouldn't have noticed him until I heard the soft crunching of sand covered footsteps but he had projected the thought towards me and I appropriately caught it.

He sat beside me, taking in the sweet, summer air around us and burying his toes in the sand. I sat up and looked off into the dark, star flicked horizon.

'_I'm happy for you, father.'_ I told him in my mind, still not making eye contact.

I kept the ocean in my view quite selfishly. I wanted to look into its infinite blue for as long as I could before I couldn't anymore.

'_You're not happy about leaving, though…'_ He thought, now putting a hand on my shoulder.

"It's for the best." I told him now in words as I glanced at him.

My voice was hoarse and cracked but I was ready to start talking about it. Talking was harder than thinking, which I think is why we avoided it so much using our gifts in place of everyday dialect.

"We'll be better off. This job will allow me to put you through college next year and it'll give us a better life. I know you're worried about starting public school but you're a sweet girl and you'll make friends, won't that be exciting?" He explained in words with a warm smile.

I laughed to myself at this.

"I probably won't make any friends…" I told him, shrugging my shoulders. I was different from other kids my age, and not just because I was a telepath.

"I'm sure they will all love you, Luna. You just have to have hope!" My father told me, lifting my chin up.

I smiled in his hand and he pulled me in for a warm embrace.

"We'll get through this together and it will be a good thing, you'll see." He added with a reassuring nod.

I looked up into the sky, and smiled at the stars. As they twinkled, they appeared to be winking at me and their reassuring approval helped me to breathe a little. I hated leaving the ocean and the world that I knew here in California but at least the same stars and the same moon would be joining me in my new home.

I made a promise to ask the stars every night to kiss the ocean for me when I left, and with that, I was already feeling better about leaving.


	3. Chapter Two

**A/N: I do hope you're all liking it so far. Like I said, I know it's a little different but that's what I'm going for! **

**Just to clear up any confusion, this story takes place the summer and a few months after the events of WYDTM, so it's a new school year with new surprises and changes. **

**Thanks so much for reading!**

* * *

**Chapter Two: What Are You?**

I could have never imagined how exhausting it was to fly across the country in a plane. I had kept myself awake during the flight writing aimlessly in my notebook and drawing the clouds as they passed by my window but after my father and I collected our bags from the baggage claim conveyor belt and hailed a cab I couldn't help but to lay my head down and take a nap. It felt like I had only closed my eyes for a moment before my father was lightly shaking me awake.

"We're here, Luna…" He whispered softly.

"W-where?" I was still a little groggy and unaware.

"We're home."

I felt as though his word of choice was lacking. This was not home- even if it was our house. I rubbed my eyes and glanced out of my window.

It was a normal house; a simple white two-story with light blue shutters and a very small green front yard but perhaps I was expecting to feel at least a bit better about the move once I saw the proof of our lasting stay here in Amoris. The only thing I liked about it was the trellis that leaned against the house. It was littered with dozens of red roses, intertwined through and crawling up the side. The trees that surrounded the house were strange and frustrating. They were different from the swaying palms I was used to and that alone assured me that I was definitely _not home_.

Father had hired some movers to bring our things into the house before we arrived and his Jetta was already parked in the driveway after having it shipped here. Yes, it was definitely our house, but that was all it was.

I blocked my thoughts from my father as to not hurt his feelings but I could tell that he already knew exactly how I was feeling. He always got a little suspicious when I blocked him. He led me through the house for a tour and I pretended to be excited and happy with it but nothing stood out to me. When we made our way to my room upstairs I slowly walked inside and looked around. My furniture had been arranged in the exact way that it was before but my walls were bare and blank. In my old room at home I had painted elaborate designs on every inch of free space. I would have to start all over here.

"This weekend we can go down to the hardware store and get you some paint…" My father told me. He seemed to be able to read me even when my mind was blocked.

I nodded my head, walking slowly to my desk and running my fingers along the smooth mahogany.

"_I'm sorry, Luna…"_ My father thought, putting his head down.

"Father, please don't apologize. I'm alright, really. I'll warm up to it, right?" I told him with a reassuring grin.

"I do hope so. I'll let you be for the night but make sure to gather your things together and pick out your outfit before school tomorrow, that way we're not rushing in the morning." He told me, nodding his head before closing my door. I could hear his booming steps as they walked down the stairs and I turned to my suitcase that was on the bed and opened it up, taking out my notebook. I sat down on my bed and held it close to my chest, sighing at first, before opening it and taking the pen I had tucked behind my ear to the paper.

The next morning I swore I could hear the echos of the sea birds in my head as my eyes fluttered open. I looked over my shoulder to see my father standing over me, lightly shaking me awake.

'_It's time to get up, Luna...' _He thought to me. I nodded my head and sat up, rubbing the exhaustion away from my eyes and letting out a long, drawn out yawn.

'_I'll be downstairs with breakfast when you're ready.'_ His loudest thoughts spoke in my head. There were always other thoughts there, though. They were muffled, but I could tell he was apprehensive about his first day of work. He was just as apprehensive as I was.

I rolled my body out of bed and stretched my arms over my head, yawning again before standing and sauntering over to my closet.

My closet was already full with all of my beloved clothing and it was a place of many different colors, fabrics, and styles since I was often inspired by a number of things and as a result made clothing as a hobby. My style didn't even really have a definition. One day I'd wear cut-off shorts and a flowery top with a headband the next I'd be in a a short gypsy-inspired bohemian dress. It all depended on what was_ inspiring_ me that day. I had never met another person that dressed like me but I didn't feel like toning it down just to meet the standards of high school.

I picked out a plain white dress that buttoned up the front and a blue cardigan to go over it. With that, I opted to wear my newly made white heeled Victorian-esque boots. After watching a Discovery Channel documentary all about the Victorian era I simply couldn't help but to put something together.

My long, blonde hair was naturally straight as a pin and I brushed through some tangles and let it run down my back as it was. Staring into the mirror, I studied my face in search of any blemishes but thankfully my skin looked calm and clear. The only marks on my face were the two black beauty marks underneath each of my eyes.

My father had always tried to tell me that my eyes were just a deep brown but I knew that they were as close to black as eyes could get. I had never seen anyone else with eyes quite as dark or strange as mine. I hoped no one would point them out at school; in fact, I didn't know what to expect at school.

When I was packed and ready to leave I walked down the stairs and sat with my father at the table in our new and unfamiliar kitchen. He had made a spread of different things for breakfast and sat with a cup of coffee in his hands, reading the newspaper.

"Thank you, it looks delicious!" I peeped happily, trying to cheer him up and scooping some hash browns onto my plate.

"I made you a lunch to take with you to school, too…" He told me, motioning to a paper bag that stood folded over on the counter.

I smiled and nodded another thank you before starting to eat. We ate in silence, but I left my mind unblocked to ease his worries. He looked up to me over the newspaper with concern.

"You're nervous the other students won't like you?" He asked me.

I swallowed the food in my mouth and sheepishly nodded my head.

"I'm not like other kids…" I whispered, my eyes darting again to the bagged lunch on the counter.

"That's true Luna, but you are a beautiful girl with a kind heart…what's not to love?" He told me with a smile.

I offered him a half-hearted smile and sighed. I'd take whatever encouragement I could get today.

After a quick breakfast father drove me to school on his way to work. We were both nervous and the emotions ran high. Although we stayed silent the entire drive we conversed our nervous thoughts to one another and offered support. It helped ease my nerves just a little…but I was still reeling.

My father stopped at the curb of the school and reached over to put the car in park. He then leaned in and wrapped his arms around me for a hug, holding me tight. It was, after all, my first day of school.

"Would you like me to walk in with you?" He asked me,reaching to unbuckle his safety belt.

"Oh, no…I don't think that would be a good idea. It's not common for high school seniors to be accompanied by their parents." I hurriedly explained. As much as I would have loved to drag my father around the school with me like a nervous kindergartner I couldn't afford to give anyone a reason to tease me.

'_Don't worry. You'll be great, Luna.'_

I offered him a sideways smile and nodded, thinking my goodbyes and opening the car door. As I closed it and turned to the school I stood back and studied it for a moment. I turned around and waved one last goodbye to my father before he drove off, leaving me stranded with no place to run.

'_You're okay…you're alright…you'll be fine…'_ I chanted this mantra to myself over and over in my head as I drew heavy breaths.

Students walked past me, some staring and some ignoring me. I tuned out from their thoughts as to not discourage myself further and pulled up my book bag, taking the first steps towards the school. Each step that brought me closer only made my stomach sink even more. I had no idea how to interact with people my age so just decided that I would be myself. If that wasn't good enough for them then at least I could say I did everything I could.

I walked up the front steps of the school and pulled open the doors. As I peered down the hallways I froze. There were people everywhere, all buzzing around and talking at the same time. I could only imagine how their thoughts would have sounded. It instantly paralyzed me. I didn't even know where to go or what to do next.

"**Luna Broderick?"** I heard my name being called out from behind me. I quickly whipped my body around to respond to my name.

In front of me stood a petite girl, a few inches shorter than me with a wide smile plastered on her face. Her big blue eyes sparkled and exhumed friendliness and her dark brown hair ran straight down over her shoulders. She held a clipboard in her hands and looked to me for a response.

"Um, y-yes…that's my name" I stammered, my palms instantly becoming clammy.

"It's so nice to meet you, Luna!" She expressed, taking my hand in hers and shaking it. I hoped she wouldn't notice how sweaty they had become.

"I'm Brooke- student body vice president. I'm here to show you around and help you get registered. You know- all the fun stuff. C'mon, follow me!" She chirped. I nodded my head and looked behind me before following her down the crowded halls.

She seemed like a nice girl; so surprisingly chipper for such an early hour in the morning and definitely friendly. I instantly admired her sociability but as we walked in silence I wondered if it was just a mask and found the perfect opportunity to read her and see what she really thought about me. This would be my chance to see how high school girls normally thought.

I focused on the back of her head and tried to tune out the voices around me letting her thoughts flow smoothly into my own.

'_She seems like a really nice girl, I hope she likes it here…I love Castiel so much, he's so cute and funny and sweet and I had such a good time with him last night. I hope we can hang out again tonight after school. Maybe I'll sleep over his house tonight…'_

I tuned out once I got the main jest of her thought process. I was relieved to find nothing but good thoughts, even if the last part was a little weird. I assumed that Castiel was the name of her boyfriend…at least I hoped for her sake that he was her boyfriend.

We came up to a room and Brooke leaned over and opened the door; I followed her close behind and saw that inside stood a boy about my age rummaging through a stack of papers. He had hair as blonde as mine and he shifted his gold eyes to us when he heard the door close. I kept quiet and waited for Brooke to speak again.

"Ah, just the guy I was hoping to see. Nathaniel, this is the new student, Luna!" Brooke peeped happily looking back to me. I offered him a shy smile and he placed the papers down on a desk walking over to me with a welcoming grin.

"It's great to meet you, Luna! I'm Nathaniel, the student body president. If you'll ever need anything don't hesitate to ask either Brooke or I! Brooke mostly handles the new student paperwork but I can help you with anything else!"

He was professional and charismatic in his introduction and when he outstretched his hand for a shake I took it with a smile.

"T-thank you…" I managed, still feeling very reserved and a little frightened. So far though, everyone seemed nice.

"Let me just find your paperwork…" Brooke hummed, walking over to a file cabinet and opening up a top drawer.

While I waited for her to do that I glanced over at Nathaniel who was gathering the papers he had put down again. I quickly tuned in to his thoughts- just to get an idea of who he really was.

'_This paperwork never stops; I can't believe she wants them by noon…and on top of that, we have to practice for our show this weekend. I can't wait to graduate. Just nine months left of this…' _

It was obvious that Nathaniel worked very hard and took his job pretty seriously. I felt relieved that he didn't think badly of me. In fact, I was relieved that I didn't appear in his thought flow at all.

"Ah, here we go. I probably should have set these out before you got here but you're my first new student and this is my first term so I'm still a little overwhelmed." She explained with a giggle. She seemed a little scatterbrained as she fished haphazardly through the papers in her hands.

"It's okay, I'm in no rush." I told her softly. She smiled at me and let out another chuckle.

"Looks like your paperwork and registration is complete, I just need a twenty-five dollar registration fee from you but you can get that to me or Nathaniel by the end of the week." She told me, straightening the paperwork in her hands.

"And?" Nathaniel asked her. Brooke looked over to him and shrugged her shoulders.

Yep, definitely a scatterbrain.

"And a photo of you, for your I.D, of course." Nathaniel added. Brooke gritted her teeth and turned to me.

"Y-yeah, what he said." She chuckled, turning red.

"Okay, I'll be sure to get those things by tomorrow…" I told her as she walked over to me.

"Looks like we still have plenty of time for a tour!" Brooke said after looking over at the clock that hung on the wall. "C'mon, I'll show you around!"

I turned to follow her, looking over my shoulders at Nathaniel once more.

"It was nice to meet you, Luna! I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other around!" Nathaniel called to me. I waved back to him with a grin and shadowed Brooke back into the hallways.

As we walked I noticed that the halls were substantially less crowded. I followed by Brooke's side, studying my surroundings.

"So, I saw in your file that you're from California…and that you were homeschooled. I bet this is all a bit scary for you." Brooke said, turning to face me.

I nodded my head. "Yes, it's definitely quite intimidating…" I told her sheepishly.

She looked up at me with a warm smile.

"I was the new kid last year so I can almost relate but it must be even more overwhelming being your first time in a public school. Just let me know if anyone gives you a hard time here. Most of the students are quite nice but there are a select few you should watch out for." She explained.

I swallowed a nervous amount of bile, nodding my head in understanding. I seriously hoped that I wouldn't have to take Brooke up on that offer.

She showed me around the school with my schedule in hand, pointing to the classrooms and giving a brief explanation of each one. I listened intently and tried to pay great attention to each and every detail. At the end of the hallway Brooke opened a door to a stairwell and lead me through first, closing the door behind her.

"This is the staircase…nothing too special here- although it is a pretty magical place to me." She giggled, rolling her eyes to herself.

I tilted my head in confusion as I looked around. There were a few lockers that lined the walls and some graffiti on the side of the staircase. It was really nothing special or magical at all.

"This spot, right here…" Brooke started, standing on the second stair. "Is where my boyfriend and I had our first kiss." She exclaimed, giddily.

I smiled and giggled a bit, unaware of her intentions of sharing that piece of information with me. Not a very romantic place, if you'd ask me…but then again I didn't know the back story at all.

"That's cute! How long have you been with your boyfriend?" I asked her, trying desperately to make normal teenager conversation as she led me up the stairs.

"Seven months next Tuesday. Seems like it's been forever though..." She sighed, letting out a chuckle as she opened the door.

I nodded my head with a smile and continued to follow her as we explored the second floor. After a quick lead through the winding halls she lead me back down the stairs and to another door at the end of a long hallway. I was already short of breath.

Brooke gracefully sauntered in front of me and stood in front of the door with a delightful smirk sprawled across her face.

"I saved the best for last." She told me with a wink before pushing the door open. The sunlight rapidly poured through, illuminating the spaces around us and turning everything a blindingly bright shade of white. I shielded my eyes as I followed her out onto a paved enclosure.

"This is the court yard- easily my favorite spot on school property...besides the staircase." Brooke giggled as I peered around at my surrounds.

The court yard was indeed something to brag about. Spacious, green and wide, the area was full of benches, flowers, grass and stragglers that I assumed were killing time with their friends before classes started. Brooke quickly pointed out the garden and the gymnasium across the yard before waving to a group of people gathered together by a bench under some trees.

"C'mon, let me introduce you to my friends!" She expressed, motioning me to follow her. I cleared my throat and wordlessly chased after her as she skipped ahead of me and into the arms of a lanky teenage boy. I instantly assumed that he was the famous boyfriend I had heard so much about.

"Cas, this is Luna!" Brooke expressed once the boy let go of her. I didn't have to read his mind to figure out that he was love struck. He hung on every word Brooke said, looking straight to me with a hospitable smile and stretching out a calloused hand.

"Luna, huh? That's a cool name. I'm Castiel- Brooke's better half." He snickered, flashing a cheeky smirk and shaking my hand.

I laughed along as Brooke pinched his side and rolled her eyes. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Castiel." I said politely.

He was rugged and his eyes were smoldering and intimidating, but I could feel a comfortable vibe and quickly dipped into his mind as we shook. Thoughts of Brooke, mostly and of music and instruments bounced around in his jumbled mind and I smiled as I deemed him a nice boy.

"Oh! I love your boots!" I heard from behind him. A beautiful sparrow-boned girl stepped in front of Castiel and wrapped her arms around me for a hug. I was completely frazzled but hugged her back, swallowing nervous bile.

"I'm Rosalya!" She added once she pulled away. I smiled and tuned into her thought flow which was full of nothing but nonsense about 'cute boys' and clothes. I laughed to myself at her stereotypical teenage girl thoughts and grinned at her with a nod.

"I'm Luna, and thank you very much for the compliment!" I gushed. Rosalya winked playfully at me and then stepped aside allowing me to see the last silhouette in the threesome.

"Lysander?" She sang, poking his shoulder and motioning him to introduce himself.

A shadow of a boy stood behind her and I glanced to him at the mention of his presence. When my eyes caught his, my mind immediately started taking notes; diligently observing each detail of his structure.

He was tall, willowy and poised, standing there with one hand brought carefully to his chin and the other holding his elbow locked in place. His flashy sterling-silver hair fell around his face in sweeping locks; the tips on one side notably dipped with black to off-set the paleness of what appeared to be a naturally pigment-lacking mane.

His eyes were equally if not more unique and I quickly recognized the condition as Hetrochromia, yet another pigmentation rarity. His left eye shined a bright golden yellow while the right was a hue of piercing emerald green and he glared at me from under his bangs. His expression was desolate and a little uncomfortable.

Most notable however was his attire. I was pleased inside to see that he was dressed head to toe in elegant Victorian fashion; the first person I had ever come across to sport such designs.

I was _eager _to see his thoughts.

Before he introduced himself I decided to quickly gaze into his head and discreetly fixed my eyes on his forehead, allowing my mind to open and flow directly into his. While I instinctively expected to hear words and mumbled thoughts enter my own train of thought I instead _hit an unfamiliar barrier_ and gasped to myself in utter shock. My heart sank uncomfortably into the pit of my stomach as I tried to draw air into my heaving lungs.

_I was completely unable to read his mind._

I just stared at him, my mouth agape and my eye twitching. I couldn't help but make it obvious that I was completely shocked. _This had never happened to me before._

"I-if you'll just excuse me..." the boy muttered, pushing past me and hurriedly walking off. I just kept my eyes on the ground, blinking my eyes and trying to figure out what had just happened.

"Lysander!" Castiel called to him. Brooke put her hand on my arm as she looked behind her shoulder and then back to me.

"I'm sorry Luna. He's _very_ shy..." She stammered. Although she tried to make an excuse for him she seemed almost as confused as I was.

"What is _up_ with him today?" Rosalya barked, crossing her arms.

"I have no fucking idea..." Castiel scratched at his scalp and I was surprised when I didn't even cringe at his cuss word. "That was nothing against you, Luna. Lysander is clearly not himself today." Castiel explained to me sweetly. I shrugged my shoulder, trying to act as though I wasn't scrambling for answers.

"It's okay. I'm shy too so I understand..." I shrugged with a fake smile.

In reality my head was reeling and my stomach turning. I felt as though I would vomit at any moment. I was dizzy and tried my best to stay alert and focused but the world around me was pulsating and melting.

How was it possible that I couldn't read his mind?

A trivial part of me found it funny that I had wished so long to be just like everyone else and yet at the slightest prospect of not being able to use my gift I went into an anxiety, but a larger part of me deemed it justifiable.

It was unreal…impossible even.

_What is he?_

* * *

**Reviews are greatly appreciated and please don't hesitate to tell me what you think. I am still a little nervous about this only because it's so different but I'm thrilled to be writing again and have so many ideas for this that I can't wait to share with you guys. I've missed you all SO much and am glad to be back doing what I love most.**

**-Exactlyamanda xoxoxo**


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three: Operation Impenetrable Fortress**

The rest of my first day was hazy and illusory as I tried to reason with myself while my subconscious and sanity bickered back and forth. I went without so much as one run-in with the mystery boy that haunted my thoughts and by third period I was convinced it had never happened in the first place and that the whole thing was nothing more than a figment of my vivid imagination.

Yes, that was it. I had imagined the whole thing due to lack of sleep, stress, an empty stomach, or perhaps even a budding case of schizophrenia. Any old excuse would do.

The first class of the day was daunting. Every face new and uninviting; the whirling of whispers prompted me to keep my mind tuned out from the thoughts around me. I thankfully had second period with Brooke and with each word and grin exchanged I was growing to like her more. She seemed carefree, ditzy even- but she was a nice girl who showed me much kindness. I found myself in a classroom with Rosalya and Nathaniel at one point and the both of them also offered warm smiles and a seat close to theirs.

Maybe this whole high school thing wasn't as bad as the television portrayal.

When lunchtime approached I was invited by Brooke to join her and her friends in the music room she had showed me on our tour earlier. I followed her there happily, thankful that I wouldn't have to awkwardly eat alone and hoping not to see the strange boy that afflicted my thoughts from this morning. I was _seriously_ banking on the idea that the whole thing was just a fever dream of some sort.

"Lysander has the flu…or_ something_. He left right before classes started." Castiel announced as we walked into the room. He held a guitar in his lap and when he saw me he smiled and nodded a friendly hello. "Oh, nice to see you again Luna!"

I nodded back, my stomach also exhibiting flu-like symptoms as I heard the name that Rosalya had called out early this morning. I was abruptly ripped from my fantastic and convenient reverie.

_Lysander_…he was all _too _real.

"Poor thing…we should swing by his place after school with soup or something." Brooke suggested somberly as she lead me to a row of chairs and sat next to Castiel. I cautiously wiggled in between her and a fidgety Rosalya.

"How are you liking Sweet Amoris so far?" I heard from my right. I looked over to Rosalya with a smile and shrugged.

"I like it fine…" I told her sheepishly. She grinned and nodded.

"Have you had the pleasure of meeting Armin Butler yet? Or Kentin Polanski?" She asked me, raising an eyebrow. I didn't recognize any of the names.

"Um…" I stammered, not quite sure what to say. "Who?"

She chuckled. "I guess you haven't. They are like- the _dreamiest _guys in school. You'll know them when you see them."

I giggled and shrugged, not certain how to react. I guess I wasn't quite ready to 'talk boys' yet- even if there had been any _to_ speak of.

"Has anyone else caught your eye yet? There are a handful of cute guys around here- although Armin and Kentin are my favorites." She giggled.

I blinked and saw green and yellow. Shaking the spotty colors from my eyes I shrugged my shoulders.

"Not really…I haven't had the chance to talk to many people other than the three of you." I told her, looking around the room.

"Well let me know when you set your sights. I'm a master at setting people up, right Brooke?" Rosalya called over to Brooke as she plucked away at the strings of the guitar in Castiel's lap.

"Got that right!" Castiel laughed. I considered it an inside-joke and just laughed along, adding to the comic relief of my awkward first experience with aquantainces my age.

Between playing with the guitar and coddling each other Brooke and Castiel shared a container of chicken nuggets and Rosalya picked at a salad in her lap. My stomach was weak, tumbling and thrashing about. My appetite was shot and I couldn't even stomach _the idea_ of eating anything. The strange encounter from this morning was still fresh on my mind.

Nathaniel soon joined us, followed by a tall brunette who introduced herself as Melody. Melody's mind, like Nathaniel's, appeared plagued with stressful qualms. I wondered how Brooke could be so carefree as the vice president of the student council when Melody was overwhelmed with pressure from her delogate position

I was beginning to get the feeling that I was in the company of a bunch of couples although I couldn't imagine that Rosalya was Lysander's girlfriend as her mind was constantly flooded with thoughts of anyone but Lysander himself. They resembled each other enough to be siblings; Rosalya's hair the same pigment-less silver as Lysander's.

"Lysander…he's the boy from earlier?" I blurted, my thoughts rolling off of my tongue and pushing past my teeth, escaping before I had a chance to restrain them.

"Yeah, that's Lys. He's usually much more charming than he was this morning…although he is clueless when it comes to talking to girls." Rosalya laughed fondly recalling him.

"Is he your brother?" I asked her cautiously.

Rosalya giggled and shook her head. "He might as well be…but no, we aren't blood related or anything. We've been close for a long time. I dated his older brother for a while and we bonded through that." She explained.

I nodded my head in understanding slowly putting the pieces of the puzzles of group together. "I see…"

I watched from my seat, occasionally making small talk with Rosalya and Melody as the rest of the group fiddled around on various instruments. I was hopeless with anything musical and it appeared as though I had stumbled across a collection of prodigies. Nathaniel sat at a drum set beating away to the rhythm of Castiel's hissing guitar and Brooke ran her fingers up and down the ivory keys of a baby grand piano playing a tune that went along.

"Are they members of the school's band?" I asked Rosalya and Melody as they listened to the pleasant sounds that came from their instruments. They laughed and shook their heads.

"Not the school band…they don't offer the kind of music that the boys play." Rosalya explained.

"They practice here during lunch and then often times after school as well. They've got a show coming up this weekend so they'll be crazy about practice this week." Melody added.

"A show? Like…a concert?" I asked.

"Yeah. During the summer Brooke signed the band up for an inner-city gig and ever since then they've played almost every weekend; they even have a little bit of a following. Brooke has been a great for them. She made them a few pages on some social networking websites that helped boost their popularity and on top of her work as Nathaniel's vice president she also manages the band. She's pretty great. Last year she was a little fireball of anxiety and sensitivity but I think Castiel has helped her come out of her shell a lot." Rosalya expressed.

"Talking about me?" Brooke asked with a laugh, stumbling over the chairs to join us from her seat at the piano.

"Just about how great you are!" Rosalya giggled back. Brooke rolled her eyes.

"Don't listen to a word she says; I'm a mess. When Nathaniel asked me to be his vice president after seeing how good I was with new students last year I couldn't say no but in truth it's quite a job. I don't know if I'm doing him justice. I just hope that no one assassinates him before we graduate…" She laughed.

Melody scoffed, rolling her eyes. "You're doing fine, Brooke. Nathaniel pretty much takes care of everything himself making everyone else's job almost obsolete. He said you did a great job with Luna today, though."

"You've been a wonderful help!" I added.

Brooke flashed me a modest grin. "Thanks Luna. You're _too _sweet." She gushed. My cheeks flushed and burned and I ran my fingers through my hair coyly.

"Your outfit is amazing, Luna. Where do you shop? Those boots are especially cute." Rosalya blurted, pointing down at my tall white makeshift Victorian-esque boots.

"Oh, well I threw these together a few weeks ago after seeing something similar on TV. I _think_ this dress is from an estate sale and I bought this cardigan at a thrift store." I peered down at my attire, recalling the moments that each piece came into my possession.

"Wait…you _made_ those boots?" Brooke asked me raising her eyebrow. I nodded my head, chewing my lip.

"That's impressive. Are you some kind of aspiring fashion designer?" Rosalya exclaimed, leaning in closer.

"Well, I don't get out much so I guess I try to entertain myself by making things. I made a lot of random things, actually. I don't think I'll end up making things for a living though." I divulged as they listened intently. I felt flustered with the attention but realized that deep down it was a great feeling to talk to people my age.

"What else do you like to do?" Melody innocently asked. Were they really _that_ interested in getting to know me? I had assumed that they were only trying to be nice; pitying me on my first day.

"Back home I really didn't do much of anything. I like to draw and paint and I spent a lot of time on the beach. I'm not a huge swimmer or anything, I just liked the scenery, I guess. I like to write, too. I write a lot." I explained.

I felt like a hermit crab slowly coming out of my hard-cased shell to have a peek at the world around me. I was beginning to feel a bit more comfortable already.

"What do you write?" Brooke asked, pressing for more.

"I write _everything_. Mostly poetry, I guess."

"It seems like you and Lysander would have a lot to talk about! It's a shame he's not feeling well today." Brooke sighed. I shook my head, giving Brooke the satisfaction of a chuckle but nothing more.

As far as I was concerned, Brooke was right. Lysander was real and whether I wanted to believe it or not_- I couldn't read him_. Even though I'd only had him in my peripheral line of sight for less than a minute his image burned itself into the back of my mind and I knew I wouldn't be able to shake him out until I figured him out.

I had some serious research to conduct.

* * *

My first day ended just as abruptly as it had begun and I found myself in the front of the school scanning the line of parent-operated vehicles for my father's white Jetta.

The sun beat down on my back and I could barely see through my tightly squinted eyes as I tried to shield them from the bright sunshine. When I spotted my ride I trotted over to the car and quickly threw open the passenger's side door sliding my body into the seat and settling in. I hugged my backpack and looked over at my father who was eagerly awaiting me to tell him all about my first day.

"It was fine…" I assured him with a shrug. There was something on my mind of higher priority than how school went and he could sense it.

"_Just _fine?" He asked me, raising an eyebrow.

"Our gifts work on all people, right?" I blurted, breaking away from the cliché first day conversation as he pulled onto the street.

He looked over at me with a quizzical glance. "Yes Luna; all people without the ability to block their thoughts. You know that."

"I met a boy today...I couldn't read him." I muttered, still dumbfounded at the realization."It was almost as if he _was_ _blocking_."

"No, Luna. There aren't any telepaths in this area; all of the lineages have been traced through the database. Are you positive that you couldn't read him?"

"Yes! I tried to and it was like hitting a barrier. What could that mean?"

"Maybe you were distracted. Maybe you didn't focus hard enough." He assured me, nodding his head to himself. I shook my head, counteracting all excuses.

"No, I definitely focused...I just couldn't get through to him. Could it be possible that he is a telepath?"

"There have been others just like us, recording telepathic occurrences for centuries. You know that telepathy is a_ hereditary _mutation and our lineages are ancient; they've all been recorded. Your grandparents were telepaths, and his mother before him and so on. Somewhere along the line, this boy's telepathy should have been tracked and traced. The elders have traveled the world searching for telepathic minds to report so it's highly improbable that someone would go unnoticed since there are so few in the world."

I chewed my lip with thought, trying to wrap my mind around the entire situation.

"Well then...what would explain the fact that I couldn't read him? Is it at all possible for a telepath to be born to normal people without the gift?"

The questions in my mind were loud and clear. I knew my father could already hear them but I could not help but push them out to the surface anyway.

Father chuckled, shaking his head. "There are stories, legends that I've heard of arbitrary telepaths that seemed to appear from thin air with no lineage to speak of. It is said that they are a completely different species of telepath, with abilities that differ from ours." He told me whimsically. I lingered on the information taking notes in my mind.

"What kind of abilities?"

He continued to snicker, rolling his eyes. "It's just a myth, Luna."

"I know…but now I'm curious." I shrugged, making sure my intentions seemed innocent enough.

He shook his head. "Mind control, or projecting, mainly. I've heard of them erasing memories and causing excruciating pain without lifting a finger but none of it has ever been officially recorded. They're just stories, sweetie."

I nodded my head, feeling the urge to rush to a computer and research the stories myself.

"…So, if those kind of telepaths don't really exist than what do you make of Lysander?" I asked him.

"Lysander?" He turned to me at the stop light. "Is that the boy in question?"

"Yeah and I swear I can't read him at all. I can't even scratch the surface."

"I believe you Luna- and I don't know_ what_ to make of him. There are many things in this world that we don't know or understand but I'll try to do some research. In the meantime just keep an eye out for him and keep yourself protected." He urged me, pulling into our driveway smoothly. I swiftly unbuckled my seatbelt and lunged for the door handle, eager to take a pen to the crisp blank page of a new notebook.

I'd have to start logging each encounter I had with Lysander. I know it sounded neurotic but I felt it my responsibility to figure out why I couldn't read him.

**Operation Impenetrable Fortress **

**November 4****th****, 2012 - **_First encounter with subject_

_A wall as hard as brink surrounds his thoughts. As of now said wall is opaque and deemed impenetrable._

_Mysterious, unapproachable and seemingly introverted. No words exchanged._

* * *

**A/N: I'm SO glad you guys are enjoying it so far! I hope it's not starting out too boring- but if it is, rest assured that I have LOTS of drama planned for the future! I'm very excited about my ideas for this and am loving writing it so far! Stay tuned for more and as always- thank you SO much for your wonderful feedback!**

**XOXO**


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four: Hope**

I was thankful that I had decided to wear flat-footed suede boots to my second day of school. As I slipped around the corner and jogged down the hall to my classroom I managed to get to the there in one piece. I was _late._

Well, not _technically _late- but I did show up with only enough time to rush down the emptying hallways to my first class. My initial plan of meeting Brooke and friends in the courtyard had been crumbled and scrapped.

English was first. As much as I loved the subject it was an intimidating class as I didn't know anyone and everyone seemed to want to keep it that way. I hurriedly took a seat at the far and isolated end of the classroom and placed my book bag on the desk, folding my hands and looking to the board to wait for the lesson to start. Sitting lonely and stray in my back corner I observed as the rest of the class roared and buzzed. I took mental notes in my head, watching how they interacted with each other and questioning my abilities to be as outgoing.

As I waited and watched patiently I decided to rummage through my book bag and open up my textbook. I ran my fingers down the spine of the book and then to the pages, flipping to a random spot and leisurely reading a few lines before I abruptly felt a sinking feeling and an eerie presence wash over me. I lifted my eyes to the front of the classroom.

Standing in the doorway was no other than _impenetrable fortress _himself.

_Lysander._

An uneasy lump grew in my throat as I watched his charming eyes scan the room and when they met mine an alluring smirk spread across his face as smooth as butter. His gold eye narrowed and he stroked his chin as if he was contemplating an important decision. He pulled the strap of his black leather messenger bag over his shoulder and slowly took a step through the threshold. As he glided across the room my breaths grew heavy and my heartbeat flicked and fluttered like the wings of a hummingbird. His mere presence was unsettling and alarming and my palms started to sweat.

Fixing my stare on the textbook in front of me I allowed my long, flowing blonde hair to cascade down and around my face, protecting me from his wild burning eyes. Drawing one long, deep breath I peered at him once again from under my bangs and watched as he gracefully sat down in the seat next to _me_...out of every seat in the classroom. Maybe it was his regular seat. Maybe **I** was in _his _regular seat. My skin burned with the thought of it.

It was difficult not to look over at him and once he was settled in beside me I couldn't control my mind from trying to wander into his once again. Crashing headfirst into a barrier wasn't a surprise but I was still left reeling and breathless by the sensation. I brought my hand to my neck and scratched, turning my head to clandestinely get a look at him. He placed his bag on his desk and carefully pulled out his textbook before setting the bag on the ground and looking over at me. My eyes darted to the front of the room.

My English teacher, Miss Buckner waltzed before the class and promptly took attendance. I tried to pay attention but my eyes tugged at the sides, shooting up only when I heard her call my name. I meekly peeped a pathetic _"here" _and when my voice cracked I could feel myself flushing of color.

"Lysander Larkin?"

"Good morning." He cooed in a soft, dusty voice.

I wanted to look over at him so badly but I did my very best to restrain myself even when I felt his eyes on me.

My teacher cleared her throat and began pacing around the front of the room; her heels clicking with each step.

"_Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul - and sings the tunes without the words - and never stops at all._ Anyone recognize this stanza?" Miss Buckner started, reciting stanza one from a familiar poem.

My hand instantly shot up in unison with Lysander's. I peeked at him gingerly and he glared at me, his stare burning and scalding. I couldn't tell if the smirk sprawled across his face was of evil intent or light nature.

If looks could kill…

"Miss Luna! Please enlighten us." Miss. Buckner gushed. I quickly snapped my head back, focusing my attention and clearing my throat.

"…_And sweetest in the gale is heard; and sore must be the storm, that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, and on the strangest sea; yet, never, in extremity, it asked a crumb of me_." I couldn't help but recite the rest of the poem in a soft, cautious voice. "Emily Dickinson, of course."

She smiled and nodded her head. "_Very_ nice, Luna. That's right!"

I tried to listen intently to her lecture but Lysander's presence was distracting. I often glanced over to find his eyes shift away from me.

_He was watching me._ And I was watching him right back.

As the lesson progressed into the middle of the first period the teacher introduced a poetry assignment, much to my relief. After writing her instructions on the whiteboard at the front of the classroom, she took a seat at her desk and gave us the rest of the class to complete the assignment. I instantly grabbed for my notebook and flipped to a blank page ready to complete the entire task in mere seconds.

Other students quietly buzzed and whispered to each other from desk to desk and it didn't seem to bother Miss Buckner much at all. I tried to tune out their voices and tune in to my assignment and it seemed as though as soon as my focus was finally on the paper in front of me it tugged away again- this time by a light tapping on my shoulder.

"E-excuse me..."

My heart jumped and I snapped my head up to come face to face with Lysander, staring at me warmly with his mouth agape. The eye contact we shared sent disturbing chills running down my spine and I couldn't stop myself from staring at him, doe-eyed and helpless.

"I'm sorry if I startled you. I just wanted to apologize for acting rudely towards you yesterday." He spoke, his voice soft and shaky. I nodded my head, peering into his intriguing eyes from under my sweeping bangs.

I cleared my throat and flashed him a nervous, twitching smile. "It's alright..." I meekly managed to choke out. I found myself incredibly spellbound by his stare and could hardly form a sentence.

"_No,_ it's not. I'm usually much more welcoming...I wasn't feeling myself yesterday and I do apologize. I'd like to start over...my name is Lysander."

He outstretched a long, thin-fingered hand to me and I gently took it, shaking it with a warm grin. His skin was soft and warm and I instantly grew insecure of my clammy palms.

"Pleased to meet you Lysander. I'm Luna."

The words were starting to flow out a little easier even though the tension was still sharp.

"The pleasure is all mine. Your name suits you, Luna. Your eyes must reflect the moon beautifully on clear summer nights..." He told me gently, leaning a little closer to get a peek at my dark eyes. His voice was soothing and his words made my fair skin burn with blush. I redirected my stare to the ground.

"T-thanks..." I started, scrambling to find a suitable reply. "Speaking of summer nights, are your parents fans of Shakespeare?" I let out a giggle as I watched his lips curl into a grin.

"You could say that." He laughed. "I do believe you are the first other than them to make that connection, though. Seems as though no one else reads much Shakespeare these days."

I giggled coyly, parting my lips to smile just slightly. He looked down to his bag beside his desk and pulled out a notebook, opening to a blank page of lined paper and tapping his pen against his chin before quickly looking back up to me.

"Where did you move here from?' He blurted. I was caught off guard only because I figured he had gone back thinking about ideas for the assignment.

"Southern California...by the beach." I sighed. Lysander looked on intently.

"I'm sure it's a lot different here. I do hope you will adjust in time."

His eyes fixed on the tiny cowry shell around my neck as I shrugged my shoulders and wordlessly affirmed his statement.

"I like your necklace. Is that shell from your home?" He subconsciously reached for his own neck to motion at the necklace. I nodded my head and held it up, looking down on the tiny piece of California that hung around my neck.

"Yes...I made it right before we left."

He nodded his head and looked towards the front of the room before back at me again. He seemed to be holding back as many words as I was. I waited for him to speak again.

"Did you leave many friends back in California?" He asked me, now folding his hands on his desk and turning full attention to me.

I shook my head. "I've never really had any- at least of the human variety. I miss the seagulls." I laughed.

He smiled, taking every word I said and tossing it around in his mind. I wished I could read him. "We have seagulls here." He told me, seemingly lost for words.

"I'm sure they're beautiful." I shrugged, thinking of home again. It would never be the same.

"As beautiful as seagulls come, I suppose." He laughed. He seemed to realize that the depth of our conversation was lacking.

"Why New Jersey? I-if I may ask." He blurted once more. I wished I were plucky enough to ask him as many questions.

"My father has worked from home for a company in the city for years. They wanted him here and so we came."

Lysander nodded his head. "You're living with your father now?"

"Of course." I replied. What, did he think that at seventeen my father would let me live here on my own?

He chuckled and shook his head. "I'm sorry…I only ask because most of my closest friends live by themselves. I guess Amoris is the town to drop your children off in. We see many emancipated independents here."

Emancipated independents? I could hardly cook a meal for myself. I wouldn't last very long without my father. I guess he's always babied me.

"Are you one of them?" I asked him. I needed to start taking notes about him in my mind. So far our conversation had been a little one sided.

"I guess you could say I am. My parents live in Georgia. They retired and wanted to move the entire family somewhere rural but my brother and I like it here- so we stayed." He explained.

I nodded my head, feeling sorry for Lysander. I was sure it must have bugged him at least a little that his parents just up and left him.

"Castiel and Brooke are also on their own. It's been somewhat of a trend." He added.

"I couldn't imagine living on my own…not yet anyway. I guess I'm a little bit of a dependent." I told him truthfully.

"The independence is nice but it gets hard without the stability. Leigh and I are feeble cooks and haven't had a good home cooked meal in ages but thankfully we manage well enough with microwavable dinners and poptarts." He laughed. I was eating up any bit of information he could give.

"My father isn't the best cook either." I laughed. "-but I've grown acquired to his food, and he tries." I giggled, looking down at the blank piece of paper on my desk before glancing back at him.

"And your mother doesn't cook?" He asked, innocently. It was the first time I had ever been asked about my mother. My heart sank and I swallowed bile. I didn't even know how to reply but I decided to try the truth.

"My mother is…um, gone." I stammered. It was all I could really manage. Lysander's expression fell. He looked horrified and embarrassed.

"I-I'm so sorry for your loss…" He sputtered, shifting his eyes away and then back to me. I realized that it sounded as though my mother was dead and as far as I knew, she wasn't.

"Oh, no, she isn't dead. She just…left. It was a long time ago. It doesn't bother me." I told him, my white lie rattling my soul. Lysander nodded his head.

"I'm sure it must at some points." He pried. I was almost shocked at his correct assumption.

I shrugged. "Maybe sometimes."

Lysander stared back at me with pity and I slowly shifted my attention back to my paper, putting my pen down and thinking about the assignment once more. We were asked to write a quick free verse poem about any subject. It was easy enough.

_Feathers flutter high along_

_An echo of a memory's song_

_The bitter cold was bittersweet_

_Sand and salt caught in between_

_A broad horizon, the sweet sunset_

_A part of my soul stays with me yet_

I put my pen down as quickly as I had picked it up and fixed my view on the front of the room, the sound of Lysander's pen as it etched the words to paper quickly beside me. I heard his pen hit the desk and coyly looked over at him.

"You're quicker than I am." He laughed. I raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?"

"You wrote that in record time." He shifted his eyes down to my assignment and then back to me.

"Oh." I looked down at the poem. "Yeah…it's kind of my thing." I laughed.

Lysander smiled and nodded. "I understand." He smirked, his eyes wandering. I knew how much I hated when people looked over my shoulder at my writing so I didn't look at his, but for some reason this time I didn't mind that Lysander was clearly eyeing my paper, scanning the words.

"This is really no good." I laughed, looking down at my desk.

Lysander shook his head. "I'm sorry…I couldn't help but read it. It's amazing, _really_." He told me sincerely.

"Thanks…" I shrugged. He passed me his paper.

"I don't usually let people read my work." He started as I took the piece of lined paper from his soft hands. "-but for a fellow poet, I suppose it'd be alright. Tell me what you think."

His two stanza free verse was incredible and with each beautiful word that I read I grew increasingly insecure about my own writing skills. If anyone in the world had a way with words, it was Lysander. His words danced on paper. They sprang alive and pulled you in. I was in awe of him. I read over it at least four times before handing it back to him. He looked to me for a response.

"Lysander, you've put me to shame." I told him truthfully shaking my head.

He chuckled and tilted his head. "Are you saying you like it?"

I rolled my eyes with a playful smirk. "Like it? If that is what you can do in less than five minutes than I would love to see what you can do when you take your time." I laughed.

His pale skin was a flashy bright red and he tossed his head in modesty. "I could say the same about you.

Perhaps, if an opportunity presents itself, I'll share more with you- that is... if you're willing to share more with me."

"I think that can be arranged." I said, a smile sprawled across my eager face.

Lysander opened his mouth to speak and as I leaned in to catch his words they were overshadowed by the deafening sound of the school bells. He chuckled to himself and scooped up his things, placing them carefully in his bag. I followed his lead, packing up my desk and following him through the rows of desks. We placed our poems on the growing stack at Miss Buckner's desk and made our way to the hallways.

The sounds of voices fluttering all around me and the chaos of the halls was distraction to my minor attention span. In a matter of only seconds I looked over my shoulder and discovered that Lysander had already disappeared completely into the crowd without even so much as a simple goodbye.

Just when I thought I had scratched his surface just slightly he proved to me that he was far more mysterious than I could have imagined.

As soon as I settled in my seat at my next class just before Brooke arrived to presumably sit beside me like she had yesterday I took my notebook of my bag and quickly opened to a page, taking the pen from behind my ear.

**Operation Impenetrable Fortress**

**November 5th, 2012 – **_First name basis achieved. _

_Lysander is calm, soft-spoken and eloquent. An incredible poet. _

_Seemingly interested in getting to know me, although still extremely reserved._

_Officially unreadable. _

_Has the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen._

* * *

Thanks for all of your amazing reviews, I'm blown away by your responses! You guys are the BEST in the world :) Please excuse the poem...I threw it together in two seconds flat and am not a seasoned poet by any means. :P Hehehe!


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five: Invited**

I love words. Words are amazing to me and I am constantly in awe of their incredible power to give life and a name to everything, all around us. Combining words to form a piece of art is my passion. I always have words at the tip of my tongue, lunging for my lips; begging to be heard.

For the feelings that speaking with Lysander Larkin had given me, there were no words. I fell short when it came time to tack a name onto the experience of interacting with someone that I could not read. It didn't help that he was _so_ intriguing to me, either. I wished that Lysander had turned out to be a dull, boring person with thoughts so predictable that I didn't have to read him- but that wasn't the case. I knew deep down that he had secrets of his own.

His shifty emerald eye and his sparkling gold one stayed locked behind my eyelids. Every time I blinked, the same pair of eyes stared back at me, branded into my mind. His soft, soothing voice ran up and down my ear canals relentlessly and his alluring smirk stuck in my memory like a catchy song that you can't stop singing in your head.

Thoughts of him plagued me as I strode down the hallways beside Brooke towards the music room for lunch. My nerves began to swell as I anticipated the inevitable second confrontation with him. He was stuck on my mind and there wasn't much that could distract me.

"So, you had first period with Lysander?" Brooke asked as we turned the corner.

Who was the telepath again? I always found it funny when regular people seemed to instinctively know what you were thinking of. Father always says it's because there is a little bit of the gift in all of us; some of us are just born with the ability to access it.

"Y-yes, did he tell you?" I asked her gingerly.

"Castiel told me that Lysander had mentioned meeting you. What do you think of him?"

Lysander had _mentioned _me? I blushed with the thought, although I couldn't quite figure out why.

"He's..." Where would I even start? I had a _vivid _first impression of him. "He's very nice." I decided to keep it simple.

"He is. He's probably the sweetest guy I know. There's no one quite like him." She laughed. She had _no idea _how right she was.

Before I had the chance to brace myself or figure out what I would say next we came to the music room. My eyes impulsively scanned the room and fell on Lysander, who sat with his legs crossed, writing in his notebook. As we walked through the doorway Lysander's eyes shifted from the book in his lap and he peered at me from under his wild bangs before smirking and looking back down to his work.

"I see you've survived Sweet Amoris High so far!" Castiel laughed as he walked over to us and wrapped his arms around Brooke; I giggled along. Lysander looked up again and I tried to ignore him for my own sake, fixing my attention to Castiel.

"So far, so good." I shrugged with a giggle.

Castiel planted a quick peck on Brooke's waiting lips before leading us to where the others sat. Lysander kept to himself, watching me coyly from his seat a row behind everyone else. I flashed him a shy smile before taking a seat beside Rosalya.

"You have the cutest clothes!" She squealed, eyeing my outfit. I blushed; amazed that someone was so impressed by my wardrobe. I had decided to dress down today with a simple light blue long sleeved shirt and an indigo scarf wrapped and folded intricately around my neck. My black pleaded skirt was short but I wore white tights under it and black suede boots that came up almost to my knees.

"Thank you!" I gushed. Rosalya looked like a super model and I enviously eyed her boots with a smile. "You_ always_ look great. Where did you get those boots?" I asked her, crossing my legs and folding my hands.

"I ordered them online; I'll give you the website!" She peeped, turning around to Lysander and poking at his shoulder. He looked up from writing and waited for her to speak.

"Can I borrow a piece of paper?" She asked him.

"_Borrow?_ Well, only if you'll promise to give it back when you're done with it." He smirked, a hint of mischief in his eyes as he carefully tore out a sheet. I let out a soft chuckle and he _winked_ at me. As I felt myself flush and reel I looked back to the mislead Rosalya, whose facial expression dropped with disappointment.

"B-but I was going to write something down for Luna..." Rosalya must not have gotten his joke. Lysander rolled his eyes playfully and handed her the paper.

"Oh, well in that case- you can keep it." He laughed, reverting his eyes again to his notebook.

Rosalya wrote down the website and then below it her phone number and email address. "Here!" She chirped. "Call me anytime if you ever want to hang out, or just to talk!"

I looked down at the piece of paper in my hands, nodding with a smile.

"Oh, let me give you my number, too!" Brooke expressed. I happily handed her the paper and let both Brooke and Castiel scribble their phone numbers onto it. As Brooke leaned over to give me back the sheet of contact information Lysander grabbed it and waved it in his hand.

"I'd feel left out if I didn't join in this little exchange…" He muttered, quickly jotting down a set of numbers and finally placing the now crumbled page onto my lap.

"Thanks, everyone!" I cooed, ecstatic that I now had the phone numbers of the people whom I could possibly consider my first friends. I neatly smoothed out the paper and folded it tightly into a delicate square, placing it in my book bag.

For the rest of the lunch period I didn't hear much from Lysander. He kept to himself, tapping his pen to his chin and scribbling as fast as his fingers could move. Nathaniel and Melody showed up about half way through lunch and I sat and listened as the group chatted of an upcoming concert. I didn't say much and instead eagerly listened, wanting so badly to live the lives they did. To go out, see and try new things and have adventures- the type I've only read about. I gushed over Brooke's stories from concerts and nights on the town in the past, hoping that someday I'd become integrated with the group enough to be invited out. Occasionally I'd hear Lysander let out a chuckle or a grunt in response to an embarrassing story or a one-worded answer to a question but for the majority of the time I spend in front of him he seemed divulged in his work.

After lunch, the rest of the school day flew by. I spent the remainder of my day trying to pay attention in my studies and attempting to stop my hand from doodling aimless drawings and designs in my notebook. My mind was already elsewhere and it was only my first week of school at Sweet Amoris. I was not off to a great start.

When the final bell of the day rang out I was relieved to get home and do some painting. As much as I liked being in a public school for the first time I did miss the relaxation and freedom of staying at home all day and working on my studies whenever I felt like it. I rushed for the doors, eager as everyone else to leave. I hoped I would not run in to Lysander again; my mind was only just starting to come down from the stupor of thoughts about him and I didn't need another trigger.

"Luna, wait up!"

At the sound of my name I stopped on a dime, turning to see Brooke weaving through the crowded hallways in a brisk jog. She stopped and fixed the strap of her messenger bag, catching her breath before focusing her eyes and huffing smile at me.

"Brooke!" I greeted her kindly as we shimmied from the middle of the hallway to the edge to avoid the traffic.

"I was just wondering...what are you doing Friday night?" She blurted, still trying to catch her breath.

I skewed my mouth to the side and stroking my chin I playfully pretended to contemplate her question. "Considering I don't have a life, absolutely nothing." I chuckled. Brooke clapped her hands in excitement, parting her lips with a smile.

"Excellent! The boys are playing a show in the city, I was wondering if you wanted to come! We'd all love to hang out with you some more outside of school and the shows are fun; plus, you'll love the music." Brooke explained.

I gasped, almost as though she had just asked my hand in marriage. "I'd love to! I'll just have to check with my father and see if he'll be home in time to let me borrow the car."

"I can pick you up and we could ride together, if you'd like?" Brooke suggested, raising an eyebrow.

I nodded my head to her in thanks. "That would be great...thank you for offering. I'm going to ask my father tonight for permission, but I'm sure he won't deny me my first chance at social interaction." I giggled.

"Text me tonight and let me know what he says so I can hold a ticket for you!" She told me before we went our separate ways for the day.

I was _ecstatic_. Brooke had invited me to the concert because she wanted to get to know me better and see me outside of school! They actually liked me! All this time I had believed that they were pitying me but perhaps they really did see me as someone who could become a potential friend. Just the thought of it thrilled me to no end.

So long as my father approved...I was going to a concert with friends on Friday night. Me, Luna Broderick, at a rock concert! I giggled to myself as I walked down the concrete steps and towards my father's car.

The ride home from school I gave my father the pleasure of a play-by-play of my day. I could see that it lifted a load of anxiety off of his shoulders to see me smiling and talking fondly of my experiences. I reminded him to keep in mind that it was only my first week, but he assured me that things could only get better.

Pulling in to the driveway that still didn't feel like mine was something I could get used to but parking the car in the roomy garage was a whole new world to me. No one really had garages on their beach front houses in my old "neighborhood", if you'd even call it that. I rushed up the steps and wiped my feet on the mat in front of the door, an instinct I had inherited from years of be being scolded for sandy footprints on the white linoleum, before starting through the doorway. The hunger inside my stomach scratched and clawed at the lining within, threatening to burst right through if I didn't satisfy it. I trotted over to the cabinets and opened one full of plates and platters. I was still unsure of where everything was. The next one I decided to try was glasses and assorted mugs and tea cups. I sighed, leaning against the counter and blowing a stray piece of golden hair from my view.

"I went out today and got all of your favorites. There are snacks in the cupboard," My father pointed as he explained, "And sushi in the refrigerator."

I pursed my lips into a satisfied smile as I sauntered over to the refrigerator, opening the doors and reaching for the plastic container of grocery store sushi.

I looked to my father with a grateful smirk. "You know me so well!" I giggled as I placed the sushi on the counter and turned on the faucet in the sink, tossing my hands through three squirts of citrus hand soap.

"So, one of my new acquaintances has invited me out this Friday night..." I mumbled, testing the waters. I had never asked my father's permission to 'go out' before. I never had to.

"Out where?" He leaned in over the counter, obviously interested. I dried my hands with a dish towel and joined him at the counter, popping the lid off of the sushi.

"To a concert. A few of the boys in the group play music for fun." I explained, popping a piece of sushi into my mouth and savoring every chomp.

"A concert...not a rock concert, right?'" He asked with a knowing smirk. I had never been able to lie to my father. Not only am I a pathetic liar, it's also practically impossible. If I block him, he'll get suspicious, and if I lie, he'll gather the truth from my mind.

"Well, it's not a classical symphony or anything..." I shrugged with a sideways grin. He chuckled and shook his head.

"Will I get to meet these friends of yours before Friday?" He asked, putting his hands on his hips. I could see that he was considering the idea of letting me go. I nodded my head, swallowing the food in my mouth before replying.

"My friend Brooke, the one who invited me, offered to come by here and pick me up. You could meet her then. She''s a very nice girl, father. The student body vice president, perfect grades, never a bad thought to speak of..." I told him truthfully. "You'll like her."

"Well it was awfully nice of her to think to include you after only your second day. It would be silly of me not to let you take her up on her offer...I just hope you'll use your best judgement." He told me with a wink.

My lips parted, forming a massive watermelon smile. "Thank you, father! I'm sure you'll get the same great feeling about Brooke that I did when I first met her. The others are all the same; no concerning thoughts whatsoever." I told him. "Well, except for Lysander." I added.

Father leaned in closer, raising an eyebrow. "Oh yes, I forgot to ask. Are you still having trouble reading his thoughts?"

I nodded my head with a shrug. "I can't see a thing. I spoke with him today though. He sat beside me in my English class and introduced himself. He's very nice...but so mysterious. I never realized how much I rely on the gift until I met him. It's frustrating..."

"It's a bit concerning to me that you can't read him at all. Keep a close eye on him, Luna. I'd hate to bother A.I.M about something we know so little about but if you ever feel like he may very well be a telepath like you and I, or if he does anything to make you feel uneasy, I can put in a request for someone who knows a lot more than we do to come here and assess the situation." He explained in his stern, serious tone of voice.

I rolled my eyes.

As intriguing as Lysander was, I didn't think he was worth contacting A.I.M (The Association of Illusive Minds) for or anything. It wasn't like he was _actually_ a telepath, right? Surely he would have tried to signal me somehow if he could see that my mind was blocked as well, but instead he acted like a normal person. He was just like everyone else..._for the most part_. I knew that there was something about him, but was it telepathy? Maybe he was a robot, his head filled with nothing but cogs and computerized data...or an alien from another galaxy, sent here to learn the ways of the Earthlings. A vampire with mind powers? Or perhaps a time-traveler, implanted with a micro-chip that protects his mind from the dream-eating villains of the future?

I really hadn't a clue. I was lost in a sea of _ridiculous_ possibilities but if telepaths were real, who could say that time-traveling vampire robots from another galaxy weren't?

"I'll figure him out one of these days..." I chuckled, smirking and thinking about the concert. I simply couldn't wait. Thoughts of Lysander would have a hard time competing with my excitement for Friday.

* * *

**A/N: I''m SO sorry this update took me forever to get out, I just got a new job so I've been a little busy with boring stuff. :( I have this next week off so expect a few updates MUCH sooner than this one came! This was just a filler, but I assure you, the story has only JUST begun! Thanks SO much for reading, guys! XOXO**


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six: Beautiful Coincidence **

Friday came as most Fridays do, and I could already feel the minutes dragging, each second rolling over unhurried. I was apprehensive for my morning class with Lysander, who had been his friendly self throughout the week but stayed reserved and mostly kept to himself, his head buried in his notebook. I hated being next to him for so long in silence. I hated listening to him breath in and out or to the scratching of his pen to the paper in front of him. I hated knowing that he was there, right next to me; that he was _real_, and that I _really_ couldn't get through to him.

All my life I had wished that I could be like everyone else. Now, I pitied the normal ones. The torture of wondering what someone was thinking was unbearable.

This morning in particular, Lysander strolled into the classroom several minutes late. His outfit matched the prominent autumn foliage outside; a brown long-sleeved dress shirt with a beige vest over it, lined and fastened tightly with large, brown buttons. His brown straight-legged slacks were tucked into knee-high brown boots; similar to the black ones he normally wore. A light, baby-blue scarf was folded neatly into the front of the vest to top the entire outfit off. I glued my eyes to textbook in front of me as Miss Buckner read a passage aloud, the temptation to stare almost unbearable.

Clandestinely I listened closely as Lysander fumbled through his things, rushing to catch up with everyone else. My disobedient eyes met his once and when they did, he smirked and I darted my stare back to my book- not to look up again.

While Miss Buckner read from her desk, I followed along word for word, my index finger skimming along with the flow to help with the near impossible concentration until something shrouded my textbook completely. Lysander had stealthily passed me a sheet of paper and I ogled at it as if it were a pipe bomb before looking back to him with a confused expression.

Lysander eyed the page that he had passed me and mouthed the words, "read it". I carefully turned the blank side over and saw what looked to be a song written on the front along with an attached post-it note.

'Let me know what you think', is all it said and I carefully unpeeled the post-it note and stuck it to a page of my textbook before reverting my eyes back to the task at hand.

_I've got wings, but I can't fly_

_There are so many things I can't do _

_The worst of them all though, that drives me insane_

_Is that I can't get through to you._

_Is this what happens when the day meets the night?_

_When sunshine touches the moon?_

_It's like we weren't meant to cross paths, but we did_

_And everything happened so soon._

_Are you real? You're too real to be true._

_Every night I lay wondering, I fall out of bed_

_My unraveling thoughts about you_

_Don't you know that you're driving me crazy, my dear?_

_Don't you see that I'm trying to grasp,_

_What you're doing to me, why'd you have to come here?_

_Knowing you is a difficult task_

_I think of your smile, every word that you said_

_I just wish I could find my way into your head_

I didn't notice that my mouth was agape; practically dragging on the table until I finished reading his song. I was honestly a little overwhelmed...maybe even _freaked out_. As I read each word, each verse, I felt as though I was reading my exact thoughts about him.

_Could it be that...?_

No. Surely not.

If he were a telepath, I'd know. He would be in the system at A.I.M like Father said. It was _ridiculous_ to continue thinking otherwise. I knew I was only getting my hopes up after waiting my whole life to meet another telepath, but Lysander wasn't that telepath. It was true that I had no idea what he was, but maybe it just wasn't any of my business. Maybe I was never meant to know, just like the rest of the world isn't meant to know about what I am.

What I had read was nothing more than a coincidence. An incredibly beautiful coincidence about some other girl, or perhaps about no one at all. I had to start reminding myself not to look into things so much. Writing a song about not being able to get into someone's head didn't make him a telepath._ It made him a ordinary person, just like everyone else._

As I averted my stare from the sheet of paper to Lysander, I stared into his eyes, lost in a daze brought on by my eerie relating to his words. He tilted his head as I passed him back his song.

"You're amazing..." I started, watching as his eyes lit up with surprise at my rash comment. I coughed, choking on the embarrassing jumble of words. "I...I mean, that was amazing." I whispered again, wistfully running my sweating palms across my thighs in a nervous frenzy.

Lysander chuckled a bit, taking the paper from my hands and smiling to himself as he set it carefully into a folder and closed it. He looked back to me with an accomplished grin.

"I knew what you meant. Thank you..." He quietly nodded. I shook my head back to him and tried to focus on the assignment that I assumed Miss Buckner had been explaining all while I read Lysander's song.

As if I needed to embarrass myself any more in front of Lysander, Miss Buckner asked us to find a partner for our assignment. After handing out the worksheet and sitting at her desk, allowing the students to find their own partners in best friends and boyfriends, Lysander looked over to me. I swallowed bile.

"We could work together...if you'd like." He cautiously offered. I nodded my head timidly accepting his invitation.

He pushed his desk closer to mine and I read the instructions of the worksheet, trying not to look up at him as he towered over me. "I've been working on that all week for our show tonight. Castiel and Nathaniel have come up with some music...but it's always nerve racking singing a new song in public."

Lysander was the singer in the band...I had forgotten about that. He never practiced with Nathaniel and Castiel during lunch, so it was hard for me to picture him singing in front of anyone at all.

"Well it's a very good song. I'm sure everyone will love it." I told him bashfully.

He shrugged with a smirk. "You'll be there, tonight?"

"Perhaps." I smirked, shrugging my shoulders teasingly. He squinted his eyes and smiled at me, shaking his head with a chuckle and grabbing for the worksheet.

"Let's get this done quickly so we can leave..." He muttered, beginning on the first question.

We quickly and efficiently worked through the sheet, answering each question effortlessly. Lysander and I were a dynamic duo when it came to anything about words and thankfully for us, the entire worksheet was purely writing responses to questions about the book we were reading, To Kill a Mockingbird, which we had both already read before, multiple times.

When we finished I wasn't sure what would happen but Lysander seemed self assured enough, and walked confidently to Miss Buckner's desk, handing her the paper. He looked back to me and motioned with his hand for me to join him at the desk. I was confused, but mirrored his behavior by grabbing my bag and joining him in front of the teacher, who scanned our paperwork quickly and then looked up to us.

"You two make a great team; these answers look perfect. I'll see you both on Monday! Don't forget about the essay rough draft and have a great weekend!" She chirped with an elated grin, almost as if our work was refreshing to her.

Glancing at the clock to reassure myself of what I already knew, I tossed Miss Buckner's words around in my head, trying to connect them correctly. There was still almost forty minutes left of class. Why was she in such a rush to send us out the door?

Lysander nodded his head in a silent goodbye and began for the door, stopping only to look back at me. "Aren't you coming?"

I looked back to the clock to make sure I wasn't losing my mind or my time-telling skills, and then to Miss Buckner, who now ignored us completely as she clicked and clacked away at the keyboard of her computer.

Lysander waited at the door for me, holding it open, and I cautiously walked through to the hallway, looking back to him and begging for an explanation. He quietly shut the door and then turned to me.

"Why do you look so lost?" He chuckled as he waltzed in front of me.

"Why are we leaving class so early?" I counter-asked him.

He shook his head and giggled to himself, starting down the hallway. I trotted beside him to keep up with his long strides.

"Sweet Amoris High is a strange place. The teachers assign us our work for the day and if we finish it early, we leave." He explained.

It felt safe to assume that Sweet Amoris High School handled things in a non-traditional way and trusted it's student body; maybe even a little bit too much. I certainly wasn't complaining, though.

"Is there somewhere we're supposed to go and wait?" He appeared to know exactly where he was going and I wanted to know as well.

"Some students go to the courtyard. Some go to their cars, or to the library. The athletes usually sprint to the gym for some extra practice. We have our own place, though, which is where I'm taking you."

He smiled at the ground and kept walking towards the main doors that lead to the courtyard and I followed closely, limiting my questions to avoid looking any more clueless than I already appeared. He seemed to know the way and I was okay with that.

I followed him around the school to a door that he quickly unlocked with a key drawn from his pocket. Looking left and then right, he opened the door and rushed in, holding it and crossing his legs. I glanced cautiously over my shoulder, my heart starting to pump mass amounts of adrenaline through my weak and fragile little veins when I realized that we probably weren't allowed where he was taking me.

"Come now, don't be afraid. I promise you'll appreciate it." Lysander calmly assured me from inside, holding the door wide for me. I swiftly walked through, letting him shut the door and lead me up a steep, narrow staircase. I held the railing and made small, nimble steps, taking care not to stumble in the darkness and following Lysander's feet. When we reached the top, he unlocked and opened just one more door, allowing me to walk through before him.

Gazing around, I realized immediately that we were on a balcony at the top level of the school overlooking the entire town of Amoris. Taking a deep breath, I allowed my eyes all of the sunlight and beauty they could take in as I peered around and over the ridge with wonder.

"What a view…" I blurted as Lysander came over and folded his arms onto the ledge, leaning forward and appreciating the outlook.

"We come up here a lot, the group and I. Castiel stole a bunch of keys from the teacher's lounge his sophomore year and we found that one of them unlocked the doors that lead up here. No one knows besides us." He explained to me. I kept my ears on him and my eyes on the winding roads and toppling trees below.

"It used to be just Castiel and I's spot but once he brought Brooke up here the first day they met it kind of turned into their special place. They come up here alone all the time now and do god knows what. It's not like I'm angry with them or anything, it just doesn't really feel like my spot anymore like it used to..." He stopped himself, contemplated his words, and started again. "I'm kind of rambling...I apologize..."

"No, don't apologize for anything...I can understand that." I didn't know what else to tell him, but I was hanging on every ounce of personal information that he was willing to give me.

He laughed to himself, shaking his head and tossing his hair before turning to me.

"Do you smoke cigarettes?" He asked me. I scrunched and furrowed my forehead in confusion at his arbitrary question and shook my head.

"No…do you?"

"They repulse me beyond explanation; I was just wondering. Brooke and Castiel are chain smokers, hence the cigarette butts lying around everywhere. I've been meaning to clean them up, but the smell gets on my fingers and it drives me insane. It's refreshing to come up here with someone that doesn't smoke." He laughed, glancing around at the numerous cigarette filters that littered the ground.

"My father smokes cigars sometimes in his office. I'm not allowed inside anyway, but the smell keeps me out just the same." I giggled, recalling memories of the smoke rolling out from under the door as he worked in his office.

"You're not allowed in your father's office? That's peculiar." Lysander noted.

"My father likes his privacy…I wonder sometimes if he hides things from me, but I don't mind not knowing." I shrugged. I had never given it much thought. It's just the way things have always been. I had always assumed that he just thought of his office as the only place he could be alone with his thoughts and his work, plus- it's hard for anyone to hide things from a telepath.

"I do." Lysander admitted, throwing his head down in laughter. "I'm a very nosy person."

I smiled and shook my head. I guess I could relate to him with that. Although I didn't really care to know, I read people's secret thoughts and that alone made me particularly nosy.

"A little snooping here and there never hurt anyone." I agreed with him, offering a sideways smirk as I ran my finger down the smooth, glossy concrete of the ledge that held us both from falling at least thirty feet.

Lysander opened his mouth to speak, breathing out with a smile and a dreamy stare before the door flew open, cracking against the wall and creating a noise that made us both jump and look. I caught my breath once I realized that it was Castiel and Brooke, holding hands and giggling at first and then quieting once they saw that Lysander and I had beat them to the top.

"Oh, hey guys!" Brooke chirped, straightening out her dress and flattening her hair. She tried to act nonchalant but it was obvious that she had suffered some kind of roughing up, presumably in the dark confides of the staircase. I'd respectfully stay out of her mind for my own sake.

Castiel fastened the undone buttons of his shirt as he smirked, eyeballing both Lysander and I. "Are we interrupting something?" He laughed, his devious grin snarky and implying as he ran his hand through his messy, pre-tugged hair. I was mortified.

"Not at all. Luna and I were dismissed early and came to chat. Seems like we may be the ones interrupting…" Lysander sneered.

Castiel shrugged, pulling a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and taking two out, putting them both between his lips and lighting the tips.

He handed one of them to Brooke and she took it to her lips and inhaled the smoke. I watched as the end of the stick lit up when she sucked, and as she took her lips away, she tossed her head back and blew up a cloud of smoke that instantly shrouded the area in a distinct odor. I tried to act as though it didn't bother me, but the smell was strong.

Castiel held out the flashy green pack of cigarettes, and when I realized he was offering one to me, I quickly put out my hands and opened my mouth to politely decline.

"She doesn't smoke." Lysander spoke for me. Castiel shrugged once more and shoved the pack into his pocket again.

"Good thing. It's a nasty habit. Don't ever start! Cas and I have been meaning to quit, haven't we, Cas?" Brooke breathed in between puffs as she walked towards me. I smiled and nodded my head, a little unsure of how to respond.

"One of these days, little girl..." He sighed, ironically taking a long, savored drag from his cigarette.

"Are you excited for tonight? We're going to blow the fucking roof off the place, aren't we Lys?" Castiel asked me, looking over to Lysander with fire in his eyes. Lysander smiled and crossed his arms, nodding just slightly.

"I'm very excited. I've honestly never done anything like this before, so I have no idea what to expect." I told them truthfully.

"We're going to have so much fun. I have a feeling you'll be very surprised with Lysander!" Brooke giggled, eyeing Lysander teasingly. I looked to him and watched as he rolled his eyes, obviously a little flustered.

"Don't embarrass me right before a show, Brooke." He scoffed, smirking to himself, a faint blush rising to his cheeks and illuminating his bone structure.

He didn't realize how excited I was to see him. I had no idea what to expect from Lysander and the band, let alone the entire concert scene for that matter. Throughout the rest of the school I day I took notes in my head about everything and anything that Brooke and the group said pertaining to the concert. Rosalya was intent on knowing what I was planning to wear, but I had no idea how to appropriately dress for a concert. Most of what I knew or thought I knew about teenage behavior I had learned from books and television, so my idea of normal concert attire consisted of something black and ripped. I pictured pink hair, piercings, tattoos and converse high-tops, but I knew that all of that was purely stereotypical.

Brooke planned to wear a cheesy "Team Castiel" shirt she had made with Melody one night. Melody's of course was similar, only saying, "Team Nathaniel" instead. I found it incredibly adorable and almost comforting that a simple homemade t-shirt with your boyfriend's name on it was suitable apparel for a concert. Rosalya, like me, still had some outfit prepping to attend to and I was shocked to find that she sought _me_ for fashion advice.

Arriving home after the school day, I rushed to my bedroom, eager to rummage through my closet for an outfit. I had three hours to prepare before Brooke arrived to pick me up and I knew I had some serious prepping to do.

While I laid numerous articles of clothing out on my bed and admired them from afar; picking and choosing, I became lost. It shouldn't have stressed me out as much as it did to find something to wear but I took pride in my ability to express myself through my clothes and with nothing in particular screaming "pick me!", I was beginning to worry.

I fell back onto my bed and drew a loud sigh, clasping my hands over my face to block out the world for only a moment. I brought myself back to the simplicity of California life, but when I pictured myself alone on the beach, I was jolted back to reality when I realized that life here in Amoris wasn't all that bad. At least I wasn't alone anymore.

As I laid back, watching the ceiling fan rotate around and around, a handful of hair from behind my bangs drifted into my line of sight and obscured my vision. I sprung up, wiping and jabbing at my face and running my fingers amply through the tangled jungle of strands that had been whirled and whisked into intricate knots by the gusts of air that circulated my room. I grabbed for the hairbrush on my nightstand and drug it through my normally pin straight golden blonde hair; the last thing I needed was a malfunction in that department. Long gone were the days of salty, sandy tangles now that I had found a place in this world that required looking half way decent. I'd miss the sticky strands of hardened hair, salted and glued by the constant trace of ocean.

Hours later I stood before my full-body mirror with my hands pressed firmly to my hips. I wasn't sure if I looked like I was going to a concert, but I looked like me, and it seemed as though these days, that was enough. My brown denim shorts were a bit short, but I checked every angle at every possibility to make sure that no one would have to bear the sight of my frilly underwear, even if I had to bend over. My beige suede boots protruded just below the knee and a shoulder-less black sweater that hugged my midsection topped off the outfit and made it work. I braided my bangs and pinned them up against my forehead, letting the rest of my hair fall naturally down my back and across my shoulders. Taking a layered strand of hair, I tied the tail of a seagull feather that I had washed, dried and painted to resemble the feather of a peacock. It fell and blended in with my straight hair and with that, I wore my cowry shell necklace, as I always did and always would.

I glanced at the clock and gripped my stomach when I felt the butterflies that nested deep within start to act up. Brooke would be arriving any minute, and I hadn't even packed my bag. I quickly grabbed my orange canvas knapsack from the top of my dresser and stuffed it with necessities; a comb, a bottle of body spray and a few bobby pins. My wallet and a compact mirror already took residence in the bag and slinging it across my back, I opened my bedroom door to head downstairs and wait for Brooke. Once in the hallway however, I realized that she had been the one waiting for me.

I instantly heard her thoughts and voice mixed together as it echoed in the foyer with my father's. I quickly threw myself down the stairs, panting and holding onto the railing when I reached the bottom. Brooke and my father looked over to me, smiling and laughing about something that I clearly wasn't apart of.

"Luna, how nice of you to join us! We were just talking about you." My father teased as I walked over with a face full of hot, crimson blush. Brooke giggled and waved to me with a smile.

"You look awesome, Luna!" She chirped. I sneered and nodded my head in gratitude, embarrassed that I hadn't noticed she was already here. I tried to scan her mind for forthcomings about how she didn't actually like me as much as she thought I did after I had left her defenselessly alone with my embarrassing father, but instead I saw nothing but excitement and happiness. She was officially the nicest person I had ever met.

"Thanks! You do too. Castiel will love the shirt, I'm sure!" I laughed in appreciation of her understanding.

"Brooke was just giving me a rundown of the night. Sounds like you girls have a lot of fun planned!" My father piped in.

"Yep! And I already told him that we're all super lame and don't drink or smoke or anything like that, so I think I've got you covered!" She laughed, winking at me.

My father laughed along, and I read his thoughts to make sure he was comfortable with Brooke. To my delight, he was enjoying her snarky humor and sweet, outgoing nature.

"Now Luna, you've got your cell phone with you and your I.D, just in case of any emergencies?" My father asked, furrowing his brow with seriousness.

'_Please be safe tonight. Use your best judgment, and keep your mind alert for trouble…'_ He told me secretly in thoughts. I nodded my head.

"Of course!" I told him aloud. _'I will…'_ I assured him in my head.

"You girls have fun, and don't be out too late! Text me to let me know you arrived in one piece. You've got your house key?" He pressed on. I held up my keys and flashed them with a smile.

"It was nice to meet you, Mr. Broderick!" Brooke called to him as we made our way for the door.

"You too, Brooke. You're welcome here anytime! We'd love to have you over for dinner sometime!" He went on, shaking her hand in his.

"Definitely!" Brooke gushed. She was a people-person through and through, always seeming to know what to say.

My father leaned in for a hug and wrapped his arms around me tight, as if I was leaving forever.

'_I love you, Luna. Be smart.' _

'_Love you too, you know me.' _

He watched from the doorstep as Brooke and I walked to her car, a bright yellow Jeep Wrangler; so fitting for her sunshine of a personality. I waved one last goodbye to my father and he shut the door right as I opened mine, sliding my body onto the warm cloth seats.

"Your dad is really nice!" Brooke told me as she started the car's engine. It hissed and roared, begging to touch its wheels to the pavement of the open road once more. I giggled and nodded.

"He's happy to see me finally see me interacting with people my age, I think." I divulged.

"I'm sure! Are you getting used to things around here?" She asked me as we pulled onto the road and started towards our destination.

"More quickly than I expected, yes. I have you and the others to thank for that..."

"I'm not always the best judge of people, but I could tell right away that you'd make a good addition to our group. We're glad to have you!"

I blushed and smiled to myself, amazed and impressed in my ability to make friends so quickly. I would've bet prior to arriving in Amoris that I'd spend my senior year alone, a wallflower among seasoned veterans, but life's miraculous ability to constantly prove me wrong was at it again.

"I'm glad to have found such nice people. Speaking of the others…where is everyone else?" I asked her. I hadn't thought of it up until now, but it would make sense that Rosalya and Melody would ride with Brooke at least, if not the whole group.

"Rosa and Mel took the equipment, so there was only room in their car for two. The boys rode together and left a little early to tape out where to set up their amps and the drum set and to get a feel of the place. Usually I'll ride with them, but it gets kind of boring waiting around so I'm glad you agreed to ride with me." She explained.

"I'm glad you offered to take me! I would have certainly gotten myself lost. I'm no good with directions." I admitted.

"Should be a good turn out tonight…just wait until you see Lysander. I'm sure he'll blow you away just like he does everyone else." She blurted, turning to me with a suggestive smile.

The familiar sensation of sweat as it pooled between the cracks and creases of my palms tickled and I wiped them on my thighs nervously as I nodded my head, unsure of what to say. I was thrilled and excited for my first night out with friends, but I couldn't deny that I was also anxious to see Lysander perform. I was beginning to grow fascinated in him and everything he did, and with every passing second leading up to the moment I'd see him hopefully come alive on stage, I tried to picture the scene unfolding but couldn't connect shy, passive Lysander to a lead singer in a rock band. He had me waiting on pins and needles, and I hated to admit that after only my first week he was already driving me mad.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks again for blowing me away with your amazing reviews. You guys are the best. :) I'm clearly not a very practiced song writer, so I kind of just threw Lysander's song together for the sake of the story. xD More to come very soon, and you guys know me...drama is never too far away! :D **

**Happy Thanksgiving to all of you Americans today! :) LOVE YOU ALL! XOXOXO**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven: Despite Chaos**

"_Shit_, where the hell am I suppose to park?" Brooke smacked her palms against the steering wheel of her Jeep as we drove in circles. I cringed at her harsh, loud cuss words.

The venue's parking lot was full; cars lined the road outside. Brooke had explained to me that a few other bands were playing tonight as well but assured me that most of the fans would be here to see 'Despite Chaos', as the boys called themselves. In spite of her warning, I hadn't thought that the show would be this big of a deal until we arrived and I saw the evidence for myself.

Brooke finally gave up trying to find a space and reluctantly drove down the road to a parking garage where she threw the garage attendant some money for parking. I dug through my bag, knowing that I had a little cash on me as well.

"Here, I can reimburse you for half…" I told her, holding out a five-dollar bill. She shook her hand at me.

"No, don't worry about it! Cas suggested we come early, but I didn't feel like waiting around and listening to the other bands play. Next time we'll get here earlier!" She laughed, parking the car and reaching to undo her seat belt. I followed suit, the thumping of my heartbeat beginning to quicken. I grabbed my bag and threw it over my shoulder, drawing a breath in an endeavor to quell my nerves.

We started down the sidewalk and I rubbed at my arms as the chill of October began to rush over my body. Brooke looked down and giggled at me.

"I guess you'll have to get used to the cold, huh?" She asked me, eyeing my short shorts.

"Yeah," I snickered, shaking my head. "I should have checked the weather for tonight; I'm just so used to the constant warmth of the west coast; I didn't think. I don't even own a long pair of jeans…"

Brooke was clearly used to the New Jersey autumn weather, wearing a long pair of white jeans, charcoal faux-sheepskin boots and a black long-sleeved thermal under her "Team Castiel" t-shirt.

"It'll be warm inside, don't worry. All of the body heat makes for a sometimes excruciatingly hot atmosphere." She told me with a reassuring grin.

We walked another five minutes before coming to the main entrance. People stood in a line that stretched down the sidewalk and I cringed when I thought of having to stand out in the cold for much longer waiting. I followed Brooke as she strangely walked towards the front of the line and waved at the big man, taking tickets and names, who stood at the front.

"Ah, Brooklyn Bridge!" He gasped happily, ignoring his next set of ticketholders and turning to us. I stood awkwardly behind her, my brow furrowing at the bizarre nickname as I surreptitiously attempted to wipe my sweating palms across the backside of my shorts.

"We're running a little late, Bruce. Can we squeeze by real quick?" She asked him, pulling two tickets from her purse and handing them to him. The man called Bruce looked over Brooke's shoulder at me, and I flashed him a timid smile.

"Leonardo has finally reeled one in, huh?" He laughed, outstretching his hand to me. I took it, politely smiling over my confusion. I linked the nickname directly to Lysander and I hoped that Bruce didn't think that he and I were…_together._

"I'm Bruce, the boys' personal body guard." He laughed. I didn't know what to make of any of the things he was saying so I just nodded and kept on smiling. Brooke snickered wildly, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't listen to him; he wishes we'd hire him as body guard! The boys play here so much that we've all become friends with the venue staff." She explained. Bruce looked down at the list in his hands and checked off two lines.

"Luna Broderick, check! Leo da Vinci had me double check to make sure you were on there…seems like he's got a little crush on you." Bruce teased, his thunder voice sending chills down my spine with his outrageous jokes.

"Bruce! Stop it!' Brooke whined, playfully smacking him. I nervously giggled and Brooke looked back to me with an expression that begged me to forgive his embarrassing mirth.

"Go on in, ladies. I'll catch up with you later!" Bruce outstretched his hands and ushered us past the waiting line and into the building.

"Bruce teases a lot, don't mind him. He really is a nice guy." Brooke tried to explain as we walked into a lobby-type area.

I looked to her with a forbearing smirk."That's okay, I figured that much."

Brooke quickly led me down a small set of stairs and found her way to a large, metal door. She pressed her body against it and pushed it open, holding it for me and letting me pass through first. The ambience inside exhumed excitement and I stopped to take in every detail of the setting that unfolded around me. The large open room was full of standing people, mostly around our age. An outsized, empty stage sat at the far end and a bar lined the left wall; a few of the older spectators at the stools sipping drinks and chatting with the bartenders. The music hadn't started yet but the atmosphere was already thick with the sounds of everyone talking at once. The crowd was intimidating and I wasn't sure how we'd be able to enjoy the show from all the way in the back.

"Follow me!" Brooke called to me over the noise. I obliged and we weaved through the hordes of sweating teens to a tiny staircase that led up to a cozy private balcony with chairs and tables. "We get to sit in a VIP section!" She added with a grin. I found myself increasingly relieved that I wouldn't have to brave the crowds like everyone else.

She led me through a gate and up a few steps to the 'VIP lounge', so to speak, where I instantly recognized Melody and Rosalya as they sat and talked with an older boy I had never seen before.

His lengthy legs were crossed and his lanky arms folded on his lap as he looked over to Brooke and I. Long, wind-swept locks of jet-black hair surrounded his sculpted face and he looked as though he'd been plucked right from a classic storybook. He was the second person here in Amoris that dressed in elegant Victorian clothing and the only thing that I felt he was missing was a big, tacky gold crown perched on top of his head.

"Brooke! Good to see you." He said, standing up and towering over us at a whooping six feet at least. He wrapped his arms around Brooke and pulled her in for a hug and I stood by, aimlessly looking out to the crowd.

"Luna, this is Leigh!" Brooke expressed. Turning my focus to Leigh who outstretched a calloused hand to me, I began to study his facial features. His chiseled heart-shaped bone structure was eerily familiar.

"Good to meet you, Luna." He chirped happily. I smiled as I made a connection. "It's a pleasure, Leigh. Ah-are you Lysander's older brother...by any chance?" I asked him cautiously. I remembered Lysander saying something about a brother and the facial resemblance was so uncanny that I didn't even have to read his mind to know that my assumption was correct.

Leigh's eyebrows arched as he nodded his head. "Yeah! It's not often that people tell us we look alike or anything. How'd you know?" He seemed intrigued; impressed, almost.

"I can definitely see a resemblance. Your nose, chin, cheekbones...I think besides the hair and eyes you two are practically identical." I told him truthfully. Leigh snickered and shook his head.

"That's certainly a first! You know my brother well then?" I shrugged. No, I didn't know his brother at all. Not one bit.

"Sort of…" I lied, nodding my head and taking a moment to plunge into Leigh's thoughts.

'_So this is the famous Luna that Lys told me about…'_ I heard him softly think to himself. My eyes widened and I pushed deeper, wanting more. _'She's beautiful…she'll be good for him I'm sure- if only he'd actually admit that he likes her. With the way he comes home talking about her it's only obvious. He might need some help from his big brother!'_

"Looking gorgeous again, Luna!" I heard from behind Leigh. The strident voice ripped me from my focus on Leigh's thoughts and I looked over as Rosalya stood and walked to me with a grin.

"Thanks! You do too, like always." I eyed her adorable outfit with a faked smile, reeling about what Leigh had been thinking. I had only known Lysander for a week, I certainly didn't think of him as anything more that…

_What did I think of Lysander_?

Aside from the curious impenetrable fortress, was there _more?_ Was there a reason why anytime I talked to him I felt weak and dizzy? What affect did Lysander have on me? I couldn't find the word for it.

"Thanks, Hun!" Rosalya again snapped me from my daze as she wrapped her arms around me for a hug. Typical charming Rosalya. Melody waved a sweet, simply hello and I mirrored her with a coy grin.

"How was the last band?" Brooke asked Leigh, looking out to the crowd and checking her cell phone for the time.

"They were respectable…nothing compared to what's to come." Leigh smiled, looking over at me with a smirk I could read. He was up to something.

"Have you ever heard Lysander sing?" He asked me, sitting down and patting the chair next to him for me. I very cautiously sat beside him and shook my head. "No…"

"He's really talented…you'll love him. He's happy you could come to see him tonight." Leigh expressed. _Was he trying to glorify Lysander?_ If so, Lysander definitely didn't need any glorification to me.

"I'm happy that Brooke invited me to come and see the band play. I never did get out much growing up, so this is new to me." I told him, dancing around the subject of Lysander and trying to change the topic of the hot button conversation completely.

Leigh smiled and nodded, his eyes scanning my outfit. "Rosalya tells me you're somewhat of a fashion plate and I can definitely see where she's coming from. I kind of have an eye for it. The feather in your hair is great; do you know who made it?" He crossed his legs again, leaning in close. I could instantly tell that fashion was his _thing_.

"I did, actually. Well, I didn't make the feather…" I laughed. "I found it on the beach; it belonged to a seagull. I cleaned, bleached, and dried it and then painted the peacock design." I did get a little eager when talking about my projects, so I elaborated for him.

Leigh's eyes widened and he started to reach for the feather in my hair. I tensed up just a little at the swift motion of his hand.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to get a feel for the texture. The bleaching doesn't fray it?" He asked, very carefully tossing the feather in my hair through his delicate surgeon fingers. His touch resembled my own when working on my designs and projects. I could instantly tell by his gentle touch that he too was an artist of sorts.

"I used 20% hydrogen peroxide and hair bleach powder and it worked like a charm." I shrugged with a smile.

Leigh nodded his head, squinting his eyes as he continued to study my feather. I tried to look over at it in habit, wanting to see what all the fuss was about, but as far as I tried to stretch my eyes there was no way I'd be able to get the side of my head in my own view.

"She also makes boots!" Rosalya added unexpectedly as she scooted her chair closer to where Leigh and I sat. Leigh looked to Rosalya first before looking back to me.

"What kind of boots?" He asked. I snickered, feeling a little flustered as I pulled out my phone. I figured instead of trying to explain them to him I'd just show him a picture that I had taken; I knew he might appreciate it. It wasn't often in my life that I had the opportunity to share my work with others.

I pulled up a picture of the white heeled Victorian styled boots I had made and handed my phone to Leigh. He took it into his view and gazed long and hard, a smirk slowly emerging onto his blank stare.

"These are amazing…" He softly muttered, almost to himself as he looked up and handed me my phone back. "We'll have to have a long chat someday about materials and Victorian influence. I'm a full time designer and I'm pretty impressed by your work already. Do you have more?"

I shrugged, a hot blush rising to my cheeks. "A little bit. I had a lot of free time on my hands back before I moved here…so I made things."

He smiled, biting his lip a little in contemplation while I took a quick moment to sneak a peek at his thoughts again.

'_She's perfect for Lysander…but if he doesn't want her…wait, what am I thinking? Of course he wants her. How could he not? This is Lysander's time, not mine. I had my chance with the perfect girl and I screwed up. Now it's my job to make this happen for my little brother! I shouldn't think of Luna like that. She'd make the perfect sister-in-law!'_

I gasped for air at the sensation of his rash, fanatical thoughts. What on EARTH was he thinking?! Even with my supernatural abilities I was unable to clearly decipher his thoughts. Did he honestly believe that after a week of knowing his brother that I'd ever consider pursuing a relationship with the boy? I'd hardly ever even talked to a boy before I came to Amoris and after seeing how easily my mother and father's marriage fell apart I was dead set on the notion that telepaths don't get the luxury of true love. How could you make a relationship work with someone who can never know the real you? It was unfair to my mother for my father to put her in a situation like that, and it would be unwise for me to do the same to another. Leigh was quite mistaken if he ever thought any attempt in "setting me up" with Lysander would work.

I glanced awkwardly down to the stage and noticed that a few unrecognizable people in black "staff" shirts were setting up equipment. Brooke looked up from her cell phone and turned to us with an exuberant grin.

"The boys are on in less than five!" She gasped, her entire face lit up. I swallowed the pit in my throat as the sides of my mouth pitifully jerked out a frail smile. I still couldn't figure out _exactly_ why my stomach was in knots over seeing Lysander perform.

"I made Lysander's outfit for tonight, but he designed it. I really wish he'd let me teach him how to use the sewing machine so that we could make my clothing line into a family business but he'd much rather write and sketch." Leigh chuckled, shaking his head and pursing his lips as he observed me, hoping for a reaction. I nodded my head but didn't give him the satisfaction of much else.

"Did you make sure to remind Castiel to tie his shoes this time? We wouldn't want him to trip again…" Rosalya laughed.

Brooke rolled her eyes with a snicker. "Yep, I just sent him his third reminder text of the night!"

Suddenly, I was shocked into a deep sense of awareness as the lights in the room went dim. The entire venue screamed and hollered in unison and I kept my eyes on the softly lit stage, eager to watch the 'grand entrance' of Despite Chaos. Brooke got up from her chair and rushed to the bars of the balcony, followed by Melody. A bouncy, overzealous Brooke looked back with a beam as bright as the sun, motioning for me to join her. I carefully wandered over to her, gripping on to the cold metal of the railing in front of me and taking one last nervous breath before preparing to brace myself.

Castiel walked out first, holding his flashy red guitar in the air with one hand; a characteristic "rock-star hello" to the audience. As the people in the crowd cheered wildly for him Brooke clasped her hands over her mouth and screamed as loud as she could, nearly blowing out my eardrums.

He certainly looked the part, wearing a red and black striped long sleeve v-neck and tight black pants. He had black fingerless gloves around both hands and after he glanced up to us to presumably make eye contact with Brooke, his hair fell around his face as he looked down to fidget with his guitar before they began playing.

Next was Nathaniel, who held his drumsticks high in the air for all to see. Brooke and Melody both screamed and clapped for him as he made his way to his drum set at the back of the stage and I studied him, wide-eyed and shocked at his appearance. Straying from the dress shirt and khaki pants I was used to, Nathaniel looked like a rock star, his outfit outlandish and loud as Castiel's.

Finally, my eyes pushed past Nathaniel and Castiel and I felt the butterflies in my stomach nip and bite as I watched Lysander emerge from behind the curtains. He looked incredible, wearing a tight grey long sleeved shirt with a black vest over it and a small, black bow tie tied around his neck. His skin-tight black pants made his long, willowy legs go on for days and he strode confidently to the microphone front and center and took it in his hands confidently.

He looked out to the audience and then up at us in the balcony. I watched at the ghost of a smile emerged from his face when we made eye contact and I smirked back, my heart bashing itself along the walls of my ribcage.

"We're Despite Chaos and we were wondering; do you mind if we play some music for you?" He spoke loudly, his voice lively and teasing. The audience went wild, screaming and jumping around, grabbing for him and pleading to hear them play. Brooke, Melody and Rosalya jumped and screamed along with the rest of the audience while Leigh and I hung back a bit, smiling and observing the stage.

"I'm terribly sorry, but I didn't hear you that time. You don't mind if we play some music for you tonight?!" Lysander continued to tease the audience, this time prompting them to scream even louder to which the music started all at once.

A drawn out guitar solo played beautifully by Castiel, who swayed back and forth and occasionally tossed his head or took a few strides, introduced their first song. Nathaniel kept the beat with the drums as Lysander took the microphone from the stand and put his head down, marching a circle before coming back to the middle. He opened his mouth to sing.

What came out was the epitome of perfect. I was on autopilot as my body gravitated forward, gripping onto the railing once again and tilting my head, watching his every move. His voice was pure ecstasy to my ears and I was drowning in it. My eyes never left him and I found myself shocked and enthralled by his unbelievable, out-of-character stage presence. He danced, paced the stage back and forth, jumped, swayed, and interacted with the audience throughout his entire performance. He even had a sort of sex appeal to him as he moved his hips and bit onto his lip in between lyrics.

Brooke, Rosalya and Melody sang loudly to the words of every song and even Leigh clapped and shouted a few, "Go Lysander!" words of encouragement to his brother as he preformed below. I however continued to capture every move Lysander made with my eyes, taking it all in and keeping it for myself. He was fascinating to me. I was fixated on his performance. I was fixated on _him_.

"Didn't I tell you?" I heard being whispered into my ear. The vibrations of the soft voice sent shivers down my back and I turned my head to see Leigh standing over me, looking down at his little brother. I looked to him for an elaboration on his question.

"Isn't he incredible?" He asked me, sneering from ear to ear.

"Incredible." I repeated, turning my head once more to look back to him, afraid to miss a moment.

"I told you you'd _love _him." He snickered. I felt my face growing hot and I sheepishly nodded.

"He's very talented." I reiterated, hoping that Leigh wouldn't get the wrong idea.

Despite Chaos played ten full-length songs, working themselves to the bone and practically destroying the entire atmosphere with their performance. When Castiel rang the last chord, Nathaniel struck the last beat, and Lysander sang out the last word to the last song, I was almost disappointed. I could have stood and watched him for much, much longer.

"Thank you all, you've been beautiful!" Lysander graciously told the audience as they continued to bawl, clap and cry out for them. I clapped my hands wildly but my contribution to the gratitude of the performance was small and feeble compared to the passionate screams of everyone else around me.

Lysander, Castiel and Nathaniel disappeared back stage just as quickly as they had appeared, and all at once the lights were brought back to a medium set, momentarily blinding my dark-adjusted eyes. I rubbed at them as Brooke and the others collected their things from the tables around us.

"Did you love them!?" Brooke asked me enthusiastically as she handed me my knapsack.

"I'm completely blown away…that was the most amazing thing I've ever seen!" I told her honestly, still excited and revved up. She giggled and nodded her head.

"C'mon, let's go see our little rock stars!" She expressed, taking my hand and pulling me towards the side of the stage. The rest of the group followed me, and honestly, I wasn't so sure I was even ready to face Lysander but secretly a part of me was excited to see him.

After we walked behind a large curtain and through a dark, desolate side-stage passageway we came to a door that led to a well-lit corridor. The walls were lined with various doors and we looked down both ends of the long halls before realizing that we were alone.

Jolted by a loud noise, we all swiftly turned our attention to a door down the way as it flew open, having been kicked by Castiel. It slammed against the wall with a loud thud and the exuberant guitarist barreled through, his red guitar still slung around his shoulder dangling from his back. He was drenched in sweat and panting, his mouth agape with excitement and exhilaration.

"We fucking KILLED IT! Didn't we, little girl!?" He shouted, outstretching his arm to Brooke who as fast as a bullet went skipping to him. They laughed as they wrapped themselves in one another.

"You guys were marvelous!" Brooke screeched, kissing Castiel.

Nathaniel came out next, sluggishly gasping for air and dripping sweat. He grasped his drumsticks in his hands and laughed with a speechless shrug as Melody went to him and offered compassionate congratulations on a show well done. I continued to watch the door.

Lastly, Lysander coyly emerged, cautiously glancing at Rosalya, Leigh and I with a crooked smile. He looked just as clean as he usually did, not a trace of the intense concert on his expression or body. His outfit was crisp, his hair fell perfectly and his face was still as fresh and bright as it had appeared on stage. Leigh and Rosalya walked to him to present him hugs and pats on the back while I stood smiling in the background, not wanting to get in the way. I clasped my sweating palms together behind my back and rocked back and forth on my heels as to not seem too awkward, silently listening as everyone buzzed about the show.

After receiving countless hugs from his brother and Rosalya, Lysander peeked up at me and pushed past them. I, like usual, redirected my burning gaze to the ground as I felt him coming closer and closer until I saw his shoes in my line of sight. I peered up to him, flushed and gasping for air.

"Did you enjoy the show?" He asked me, his gaze dreamy and that famous smirk spread across his face like a string of Christmas lights.

"You were incredible…all of you." Was all I could muster. I felt my cheeks as they burned red. His face followed suit and he chuckled, looking down and then back to me.

"Thank you Luna..."

"Your stage presence is misleading, you know." I giggled, covering my mouth and gawking up into his eyes. He raised an eyebrow and nodded his head.

"I come alive on stage. It's as if I adopt a persona. Drive by adrenaline and passion I can become someone totally different, you know? It's a rush. I like to make people happy with our music. I get high off of their reactions...it may be a little pompous...but it's real." He explained with a straight face. He fascinated me.

"I could see the passion in your eyes." I told him, nodding my head.

"I hope so." He muttered, staring deeply into my eyes with a look that I couldn't quite figure out. I wished with every fiber in my being that I could read his mind.

**"LYSANDER!"**

The shrill screech had us all quiet and alert in a millisecond, Lysander especially. He snapped his head to find the source of the scream and after catching a glimpse, he rolled his neck and his eyes fluttered in sheer horror and embarrassment.

I peeked forward, cocking my head to the side to get a look at the person who came sprinting down the hallway in a frantic escapade of emotion. She was a short girl, maxing out at a possible five feet, and her long strawberry blonde pigtails bobbed and swung like a pendulum as she ran. She was dressed in an elaborate black gothic/Victorian inspired gown and with it she wore a small, decorative top hat.

Immediately, Castiel tugged Brooke by her shirt and they stepped out of her way, along with the others who threw their hands up and cleared a path for her, leaving only Lysander and I standing helplessly in a clearing.

"Lysander! Lysie-poo, you were magnificent! You're an inspiration, an angel, a visionary!" She gushed all at once, wrapping herself around the clearly flustered Lysander like an anaconda. He stood perfectly still as a statue, breathing heavily and chuckling uncomfortably.

"H-hello Nina..." He managed to mutter, carefully peeling her arms off from around his waist.

"SQUEE! You remembered my name!" She screamed, balling up her hands into little fists and jumping up and down. I looked on, my eyes wide and wondering. Her mind wasn't even worth reading as it was obvious that she wore it right on her sleeve.

Poor Lysander was visibly lost for words and the rest of the group, like me, watched on in dismay as the girl called Nina fished through her bunny-shaped purse for something. She pulled out a pen and a notebook and handed it to Lysander, who warily took it from her.

"Can I have your autograph _again_?" She squeaked, her voice pitchy and cracked. Lysander snickered and happily obliged, scribbling his signature onto the notepad.

As Nina hugged the notebook to her chest, her eyes met mine and I couldn't revert my helpless gaze from her glaring contact. Her left eyeball twitched, and she cocked her head to the side like a bird of prey, zeroing in on its next target.

"Who are YOU?" She hissed, pointing a long, sparrow-boned finger in my face. I went cross-eyed, staring helplessly at her finger.

"L-Luna...I'm Luna. It's nice to meet you..." I stammered. Lysander looked down at me, sensing my discomfort, and put a firm, protective hand on my shoulder. Nina's jaw dropped and she gasped at the small gesture.

"Luna is a friend of mine, Nina." He explained calmly, glancing down again at me as I looked to him for salvation.

"Just a friend, huh? I've never seen you around at any of the concerts. I'll have you know that I've been to each and every one of Lysander's shows since they started playing concerts…" She bragged. If only she knew how little I cared…

"Luna is new to the area." Lysander told her, as if I needed to counteract her feeble attacks.

"What's wrong with your eyes? They're black!" She blurted suddenly, leaning in to have a look at me. I felt a jab of pain and stepped back, accidently bumping into Lysander's side. "It's so…it's so _unnatural_! What kind of _freak_ are you?"

"That's enough, Nina!" Lysander stepped in front of me and looked down at the younger girl with astonishing intensity.

"B-but Lysander…did you see _her eyes_?" She just kept going. I pressed my unnatural eyes shut, knowing that I shouldn't let her cattie words get to me- it was, however, the first time anyone had ever said anything _out loud_ about them.

"What do you make of my eyes, then? They're not abnormal to you?" Lysander asked her, cocking his head to the side. Nina was at a loss for words. She began to scramble.

"N-no…no, your eyes are beautiful, Lysander!" She stammered.

"And so are Luna's. If I could kindly ask you to leave now, it would be much appreciated…" He hissed. I watched him, speechless and embarrassed. I didn't know what to do or say or even feel.

"But Lysander…" Nina blubbered, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. I couldn't allow this girl to cry just because I couldn't take a harmless comment.

"It's okay, Lysander…she didn't mean anything…" I quietly peeped from behind him.

Nina's face lit up at my forgiveness and she nodded her head with a smile.

"No Luna, it's not okay." Lysander snapped back at me before turning to Nina once again. "Nina, please go. Now."

She all at once started to sob. "This is all your fault, you freak!" She screamed, pointing to me before taking off at a full sprint down the hallway and through a door, slamming it behind her. I was so shaken and embarrassed I could hardly move.

"Crazy bitch!" Castiel called out to her. Brooke smacked him in the chest and gave him a wide-eyed, teeth-clenched look of shock.

Lysander swiftly turned to me.

"Luna, I'm _so_ sorry…please forgive me for her childish behavior. She's a distraught fan who seems to have become obsessed with me…I swear I have no affiliation whatsoever with her." He all at once gushed, holding his hands out to me. I felt flustered and humiliated and wished more than anything that he would just drop it. I put my hand up, waving his insecurities away.

"It's okay, really. She's young and harmless. It's not a big deal." I shrugged, trying to act as nonchalant as I could while adopting a pathetically staged confidence in myself. "T-thank you for standing up for me, though…" I added cautiously. The others continued to look on, seemingly shocked.

Lysander's eyes widened at my comment and he nodded his head. "I know what it's like, and as much as you say it doesn't hurt, I know it does."

I was stunned with his rash comment, left speechless and reeling.

"Let's go outside! I'm dying for a cigarette!" Castiel all at once blurted.

"I second that motion!" Brooke called out, following Castiel down the hallway.

I was so relieved for the ice breaker that Castiel had so graciously provided me with and I followed behind Leigh and Rosalya as they started off towards the door. Lysander matched my stride and looked down at me.

"Promise you're alright?" He whispered, concern spewing out of every corner of his being. I smiled up at him and nodded my head.

"I promise!" I smiled, nodding my head with assurance and bracing myself for the cold rush of autumn as the doors to the outside were opened for us.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry this is so ridiculously long. xD I know you guys like the long chapters, but sometimes I feel like they can be a strain on the eyes so just let me know if you ever need me to shorten them up!**

**You guys never fail to make my life with your kind words and incredible feedback! Thank you SO much, and I'm so glad you're enjoying everything! Much more to come very soon! XOXO**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight: The Riddles That You Speak**

The bitter dry cold nipped at my bare legs like the jab from a needle and I switched back and forth between hugging my arms and rubbing my hands up and down my legs to create friction.

Everyone else shuffled into a circle, pulling their bodies closer to keep the little heat that we had secure. Leigh tugged at the velvet sleeves of his coat and Rosalya daintily buttoned the top of hers while Melody buried herself into Nathaniel's side as he warmed her with his embrace. Brooke and Castiel wasted no time lighting up cigarettes and blowing the thick smoke up and out. I watched as it weightlessly floated up to be caught and swept away in whipping wind of the cold front.

Lysander peered down at me and started to squirm out of the jacket he had put on since his departure from the stage. I couldn't fathom why anyone would want to take their coat off in this freezing cold and I watched him from the corners of my eyes as he peeled his arms through the long sleeves. Holding the jacket out, he came to me and began draping it over my shoulders, inviting my arms to snake themselves through the sleeves. My skin twitched at his touch and I gasped silently, snapping my neck quickly to look up to him and wordlessly begging for answers. I recoiled from his kind gesture; it was all too much.

"Oh no, no! I'm okay, really! Put your jacket back on!" Holding out my hands and waving them in an attempt to assure him that I didn't need his pity, Lysander smirked and skewed his mouth to the side stepping even closer to me.

"Luna, you're not fooling anyone. You're from one of the warmest places in America and you're wearing shorts. You must be half frozen." With the last word I watched as Lysander's breath rolled out as a cloud of visible vapor in the dense, sub-zero air. Just watching made me shiver once more. I had only seen this phenomenon in movies. Now, the discomfort of the harsh cold was all around me, as real as Lysander himself.

He watched as I shook my head, taking small, rattling breaths. My quivering protests were no longer relevant to him. He wordlessly attempted to drape his long, thick dress jacket over me once again while I drew a sigh of defeat and fluster, my face hot with embarrassment. First Nina and now this? I was starting to come off as a damsel in distress and the mere thought of it was humiliating.

_"Lysander..."_

"I'm not taking no for an answer." He sternly put, instructing me with his hands as he pulled up the jacket and walked to the front to start buttoning it.

"Thank you…I've got it from here." I meekly muttered, starting on each button with chapped, stiff fingers.

Lysander stepped back and bit his lip. I looked to the stars, wishing for a way to tap into his thoughts. He was driving me mad with curiosity. Why was he being so nice to me? Did he pity me? Did he…_like_ me? I had no idea.

Castiel and Brooke whispered and laughed to themselves, sending my insecurities into a panic. I found myself wandering into their thoughts to ease my worries and make up for the fact that I couldn't see Lysander's. It was reassuring to me to know that I could at least see everyone else's.

'_It's so cute seeing Lysander try to impress Luna…I'm so glad he finally found someone he likes, even if he won't admit it.', _thought Brooke. My breaths were fleeting and heavy and my heart pounded and thumped at the notion.

'_Way to go, Lys! I only hope he doesn't end up as clueless and lost as I did when I fell for Brooke…' _Castiel dreamed to himself, his own thoughts seeming to take a trip down memory lane. I left him to his privacy and rubbed my arms, now warming from the heat of the jacket that was much too big. All around me I smelt the sweet, sophisticated scent of Lysander's cologne. It was intoxicating and exhilarating being wrapped in a jacket that belonged to a boy…_a beautiful boy_. This behavior was so unlike me.

"What are we doing for rides home?" Nathaniel asked the group. I listened intently, curious as to why anything would change.

"I can take my car back and Melody can ride home with you." Rosalya offered as Melody and Nathaniel shook their heads in unison.

"I want to ride with Brooke. The dogs are at her place and we're staying over there tonight so it would only make sense." Castiel blurted. Brooke wordlessly agreed by grabbing onto his arm.

"Oh! Lysander, why don't you ride with us? I forgot to tell you- Luna lives right down the road from you. It'd be easy for us to drop you off right after Luna since we'll be in the neighborhood anyway." Brooke suggested.

_Perfect_. As if I needed any more time to make myself look like a complete fool in front of him..

"Oh do you? Where about are you located?" Lysander immediately asked me.

"781 Hydrangea Drive…I think." I stammered, peering up to his eyes.

"Oh, we're on 850! It's just up the road!" Leigh blurted, seeming to steal the words straight out of Lysander's mouth. I nodded my head.

_Wasn't that convenient?_

* * *

After a wave of small talk as Castiel and Brooke finished smoking we all rushed back inside, eager to invite the warmth of the building around our shivering bodies. I started to take off Lysander's jacket but he pressed his hand to my shoulder.

"Keep it; just until we get to the car." He instructed. His voice was hypnotizing and influenced me to stare and nod as we walked through the halls.

I offered to help as the boys packed up the equipment and loaded it into Nathaniel's Chevrolet Tahoe, but they laughed and dismissed me and I joined the girls in the corner as they all buzzed about their weekend plans. I kept my own plans to paint my room and read to myself, as they didn't quite compete.

We said our goodbyes to Rosalya, Melody, Nathaniel and Leigh as they piled in their cars parked close to the venue and left for the night. Following behind the lovebirds, Lysander and I walked down the sidewalk in a comfortable silence.

"I like this…" I heard him say as we shuffled side by side, pointing to the feather in my hair.

"Oh." I raised my hand to stroke the feather, subconsciously making sure that it was still there. "Thank you." My voice was hoarse and cracked and I cleared my throat directly after speaking.

"Feathers fascinate me; wings, in general, actually. I find it incredible that they hold the key to weightlessly defying gravity, you know?"

"Sometimes I wish I had hollow bones. Flying away seems much easier than walking away." I recalled. Memories of chasing seagulls with my arms spread wide danced into view.

Lysander chuckled to himself and shook his head and I looked up to him, my heart sinking. Was he_ laughing _at me?

"What?" I sheepishly inquired as a cold wave of insecurity covered my entire body.

"It's nothing..." He chuckled lightheartedly. "You're so poetic…sometimes you speak in riddles; I really enjoy talking to you, is all."

My eyes shifted to him again, this time as I breathed a sigh of relief. He and I shared the same views about one another.

"You're the same way, Lysander." I giggled, covering my mouth with my mitted hands. The sleeves of his jacket ran much too long past my fingers, folding over at the ends.

"Perhaps that's what I'm going for…" He mumbled quietly, raising his hand to his chin in the way he often did when I suspected he was churning something around in his mind, although I couldn't ever be sure of why he did the things that he did.

When we finally came to Brooke's jeep at the parking garage, Lysander held the door to the back of the car open for me and I thanked him with a quiet mutter and a subtle nod. Sliding across the seats and reaching for the safety belt, I pulled it across my chest and secured it tightly. Lysander mirrored my actions and my palms began to sweat profusely when I noticed how cramped the back of Brooke's jeep was as his thigh pressed right against mine. I felt a tingling twinge of nervousness run from the spot that our warm bodies touched riotously across my entire body; I had never been this close to a boy before and although it was unsettling, I felt just a little bit thrilled by the sensation.

"I'm sorry...I have ridiculously long legs." Lysander apologized with a feeble smirk as he stretched out his lengthy arm, trying to find a place for it. He finally compromised by cautiously putting his arm around my shoulder. "-And ridiculously long arms…I do apologize."

"That's okay, I do too..." I giggled, pulling my long legs in to my chest and folding my arms onto my knees. He laughed as he tried to reposition himself to make it so that we weren't so close but his attempts only rubbed his body against mine more. I wished he would stop, only because I was enjoying the feeling of being so close to him a little _too_ much.

"Cozy back there?" Castiel sneered teasingly.

"I am..." Lysander said, shifting his eyes cautiously over to me. I grew breathless for the hundredth time that night. Was he trying to insinuate something or was he just being polite? He was so hard to figure out.

"Sorry guys…Bumblebee isn't very roomy." Brooke sighed. I giggled a bit at the name I had presumed was for to her yellow and black car while Castiel took the driver's seat and stuck the key in the ignition, cranking the engine and letting it warm up with the promise that the heat would be on full blast as soon as it was able. He pulled out and onto the road while Brooke leaned in to tamper with the radio. The tiny car was soon filled to the brim with music that was hilariously not what I was expecting, especially after listening to the type of music that Despite Chaos played.

I recognized the upbeat song as one that played at the beach boardwalk back in California often: "What Makes You Beautiful", by One Direction. I was surprised even more when not only Brooke broke into song, but Castiel did as well. They screamed the lyrics as we drove and Lysander rolled his eyes with a chuckle while I watched on in delight.

"I didn't strike you as the type to listen to this kind of music, Castiel!" I laughed during a stretch of instrumentals.

"Oh, you struck me right, but Brooke plays this garbage all the time and I sing along because it makes her laugh." Castiel told me, looking back through the rear view mirror. He was right, as Brooke was still in a fit of giggles as she watched him dance and make faces. I found it utterly adorable, to say the least.

"They're so nauseatingly cute…" Lysander chuckled, leaning down to earshot over the music. I looked back up to him, not realizing how close our faces would be. As I caught his stare we lingered there, wordlessly searching each other's eyes. My heartbeat was terrifyingly more loud and erratic than ever before and my stomach churned so badly I thought I might vomit if I gazed any longer but I couldn't tear myself away. Luckily, Lysander soon repositioned his eyes to the floorboard and I did the same, laughing away the tension.

"They are…" I sneered.

I was almost relieved when we finally arrived at my house. Castiel pulled the little jeep up the driveway and parked the car, permitting Lysander to open his door before I could. He got out of the car as I dragged myself across the seats, my feet landing flat on the pavement.

"Thank you guys so much for inviting me out, I had a really great time!" I called into the car, waving to Brooke and Castiel.

"It was awesome having you! I'm really glad you came!" Brooke replied happily.

"We'll see you on Monday!" Castiel added, waving back.

I turned to Lysander as I peeled his warm jacket off and handed it to him. He at last took it back and pulled it on over his own shoulders. "Let me walk you to the door…there are a lot of suspicious characters that wander around here after dark."

"Really? Is this a dangerous neighborhood?" I arched my brow with curiosity as we walked towards my front door.

He chuckled to himself. "That was a pathetic excuse to walk you to the door, but it worked, right?" His sheepish smile made me weak.

I giggled along with him. "You're a crafty one, Mr. Larkin."

"Crafty? I like the sound of that." His lips curled into a wild smile as he watched from below while I climbed the steps to my front door.

"Thanks for walking with me. Who knows what kind of suspicious characters I may have run into if you hadn't escorted me here!" I sneered. He continued to chuckle and waved his hand to me in a simple goodbye.

"It was my pleasure. I'll see you first thing Monday, Miss Broderick." He winked at me before turning to walk back to Brooke's jeep.

"Goodnight..." I muttered, my poor heart barely beating at all by the time he was down shaping it into something new and different. I was quick to open my door and throw myself into the foyer of my house again. My father sat at the kitchen table and my eyes fell on him as soon as I walked through.

"I see what you mean…" He announced, walking over to me with a cigar hanging out of his mouth. I recognized instantly what he was referring to.

"You tried to read him through the door?" I giggled, walking over to him and into his outstretched arms for a hug.

"I heard the car door. His thoughts are blocked, just as yours are." He accounted, shaking his head to himself and taking a long, wistful drag from his cigar.

"Do you think he could be a telepath?" I asked, tilting my head.

"_Maybe_…maybe not. It's curious, and I've been doing my research, but I haven't found an explanation." He shrugged. "Just continue to keep your eye on him. You seem to be doing a good job already. Was there a specific reason he walked you to the door?"

"He was just being gentlemanly. He's old fashioned like that. He would've done it for anybody." I reassured him.

"I see. Well, enough about that- how was your night, Lulu?" Calling me by my childhood nickname, I followed him into the living room where he patted the seat next to him on the sofa.

Where would I even start? I had to keep my thoughts blocked to him as I began. "It was amazing…"

* * *

**A/N: Guess who loves you? I does! :D**

**You guys have been nothing short of incredible to me and I'm so happy to be writing this for the best readers in the universe. I'm super cheesy, I know. Don't judge me. xD**

**I know we just had a discussion about long chapters and then I go and post a short one. Typical me… **

**In my defense, I kind of had to. The next few will be big, though. Big in length and in content, so be prepared! **

**LOVE YOU GUYS! XOXOXO**


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine: A Penny for Your Thoughts**

I dreamed in swirls of emerald and green, and recalled buttons, pale skin, and soft hands. Lysander Larkin haunted me like an annoying apparition with unfinished business, hanging over my bed and rattling chains just to keep me from sleeping. Fanatical, unwanted thoughts of him clung to the walls of my mind, hammering their stakes in deep and setting up camp for good and no matter how hard I tried to distract myself from thinking of him, his impression was one that stuck.

On Saturday, I started my painting. Birds were my favorite, and painting every feather with the tiniest strokes I managed to get a few done, capturing the image of them in flight all around the border of my bedroom amidst pink and orange clouds, swirls and ribbons of solid pastels, and stars.

A green and yellow lark sprang from my paintbrush and once I realized _what_ I had painted, I was ashamed. My mind was weaving little symbols and acting on them and after thoughtful consideration of painting over the lark, I decided to keep him there. Whether I liked it or not, Lysander was a part of my life. He wasn't a big part, and I didn't love him nor was I obsessed with him, but he did mean something to me. He was the first person in the world that I couldn't read…that I could pretend I was normal around. Maybe it was a blessing, but no matter how hard I tried to embrace it, the sensation of his mystique still drove me mad.

I wasn't obsessed with Lysander...I was _fascinated _by him.

Sunday was quiet. I managed to finish a book and write a poem and father and I watched reruns of Doctor Who, which I concluded was quite possibly the strangest television show of all time. I couldn't bear to watch anymore after three episodes but father tempted me to stay with coconut-covered marshmallows for just a few more hours which I felt was a fair compromise.

On Monday the nervousness was back in full swing the moment I woke to a baying alarm clock; the same anxiety that had besieged me right before seeing Lysander at the concert. After becoming comfortable with him that Friday night, were we friends, or still awkward acquaintances? I had no idea how to suitably treat my nervous, foolish thoughts of him and my hands shook as I struggled to pull thin, white tights over my wobbly legs. Although the freezing weather had subsided due to a cold front that had come and gone, I still opted to wear cotton, knitted leg warmers under my beige boots and with that I decided on a willowy blue button-up dress and a grey cardigan. I fixed my blonde hair back into a long, straight pony-tail and tied a white ribbon into a bow to hold it in place of a plain hair-tie, letting my bangs sweep across my forehead, and with that I figured I was ready as I'd ever be to face the subject of my fixated apprehension.

Father left a note for me, even though I already knew that he was by now at work, having been called in early this morning.

"**Have a great day today, Luna! It should only be a fifteen-minute walk at the most, but be sure to bundle up and keep a look out for trouble. Look both ways when crossing the road and don't take rides from strangers! See you at three, XOXO." **

With it he left a paper bag containing my lunch and some cash, for what I had no idea. My orange canvas knapsack lay opened on the kitchen island and I shoved my things back inside before draping it over my shoulders and heading out the door.

The air was cold, but not 'Lysander's jacket' cold, and I pulled the sleeves of my cardigan up and over my palms as I rolled my shoulders like a bird bathing in cool water. The morning smelt sweet and instantly aided in opening my weary eyes for the day even though the bitter wind made them tear and run. I kept my pace slow and enjoyed the scenery of the neighborhood for the first time being sure to watch for 'suspicious characters', as Lysander would have suggested.

The red stop sign at the end of Hydrangea Drive stood tall and proud, protecting the roads for what I could assume was centuries judging by the ivy vines that snaked and swirled around the pole and up to the hexagon symbol. Some of the red paint had since been chipped and weathered away, and the word 'STOP' was almost unrecognizable, covered by years of rust and erosion. I lingered patiently by the sign for an approaching jet-black Mustang GT to make its way across the intersection but instead of speeding by in a hurry, it inched towards me and then stopped along the sidewalk. I suspiciously stood, bracing myself for telling the driver that I was new to the area and wouldn't have any directions as the tinted windows slowly rolled down.

"Luna, hey!" I swallowed bile when I saw that Leigh Larkin was behind the wheel, and instinctively looked behind him to his passenger seat, which was empty.

"Oh, hey Leigh!" I waved back, glancing down at the watch around my wrist. I was definitely going to show up late…again.

"Hop in! It's freezing outside, plus I pass the high school on my way to the shop." He offered. I remembered father's note, _'-and don't take rides from strangers!'_…Leigh wasn't a stranger, though, right?

I nodded my head, walking around to passenger's side as Leigh leaned over to pop the door open for me, and slid myself onto the spotless leather seat. Instantaneously the smell of fresh linen and lavender was all around me and I turned to Leigh as he pulled his car into drive and started on down the road.

"Thank you Leigh…I would've certainly been late if you hadn't come along." I giggled, glancing over to him as he kept his eyes on the road ahead.

"Of course! Anything for a friend of my brother's. Speaking of which, we live right down the road…I'm sure he'd have no problem picking you up in the mornings…it's going to be a cold winter."

I shook my head. The thought of imposing on Lysander like that was blush-worthy.

"My father usually drives me on his way to work; today he went in early, so I'll be okay!"

"Alright, but if you ever do need a ride I'm sure he'd be more than happy to come and get you..." He tossed his head back to me; his pin-straight locks of long, black hair fell with it around his face as he pursed his lips into the hint of a smile.

I couldn't help but to let my mind wander; daydreaming of rolling down the streets next to Lysander, the wind in my hair and his eyes on me. Leigh's deafness to my thoughts was a blessing in that moment and my own mind's ramblings set my cheeks on fire.

"Boots over the leg warmers…_very_ nice. You've got _the eye_...ever consider becoming a designer?" Leigh asked me abruptly, looking down at my outfit and then back to my gaze. I shrugged and chewed it over. I guess I had considered it before, but never seriously. In truth, I'd not thought of my future in too much detail at all.

"Perhaps it's a possibility…"

"Well, you should definitely come down to the shop sometime…we can talk fashion and hang out, if you'd want to. Lysander has helped me lately with the register and stocking while I've been buried with the winter line, so he'll most likely be there too." He suggested with a detectable smirk. I tried to ignore the butterflies in my stomach, up in arms about the mention of his name, as I ran a restive finger through my hair.

"T-the shop?"

"Oh, you don't know? I own the clothing shop in town. Not trying to toot my own horn or anything…but I think you'd like it."

I snickered and nodded my head. "You're probably right; I'll certainly stop in one of these days!"

Two minutes and two lefts later we were pulling in to the school parking lot. Leigh parked his car at the curb and shifted it into neutral.

"Thanks again, it was so generous of you to give me a ride…you really saved the day." I snickered, unbuckling myself from the safety of the leather seat. Leigh turned and threw one arm around me in an attempt to give me a friendly half-hug and I awkwardly stiffened up, patting his back with my free hand.

"It was my pleasure! Tell Lysander hi for me. I'll see you soon!" He waved to me as I gave him the satisfaction of a grinning nod and shut the door.

Turning to head for the steps leading into school my eyes almost immediately bounced onto a chuckling Brooke, standing there with her hands on her hips, shaking her head and laughing to herself.

"I know he's a really, _really_ sweet guy, but be careful. His relationship reputation isn't exactly squeaky clean…he's a charmer, so I don't blame you, but_ trust_ me."

I laughed nervously, looking back to where Leigh's car had been before shaking my head. "Oh, no…I'm not interested in Leigh _at all_. He drove past as I was walking to school and offered me a ride…" I tried to explain.

She seemed relived as she breathed out. "I should've figured…you're a smart girl, Luna. I wish I could have had your intuition when I first started here!" She didn't realize how much intuition I had; then again, my perception was probably something that would aid Brooke well. I'd since come to the conclusion that poor Brooke didn't have any special people-reading abilities whatsoever; most everything went straight over her head.

She harmonized my pace, walking through the double doors alongside me and into the now-empty hallways. We were on time, but just barely.

"I'll see you at lunch, girl!" Brooke expressed with a one-armed hug before running off to the student council room for first period. I shuffled myself to my classroom, pushing through the door and forcing myself not to blush when I felt Lysander's eyes on me.

"Good morning, Luna. How was your weekend?" Lysander asked me as soon as I settled into my seat beside him. The lump in my throat was itchy and vexing and I gulped it away before turning to him.

"Very quiet; nothing compared to Friday night. What about yours?" I multitasked by pulling out all of my English essentials before the bells rang out.

"I worked with Leigh at the clothes shop mostly, nothing too fascinating." He had no idea that his soft, gentle laughter was _in itself_ fascinating.

"Leigh is very nice…he gave me a ride to school today."

Lysander's face twisted into a look of pure disconnection as he cocked his head to the side. "Leigh did? I-I didn't realize you knew him so well…" He scratched at his neck, awaiting an explanation.

"Oh, I don't. Not at all, actually. He happened to be driving past on his way to work and saw me walking to school; I was cold and he offered me a ride." I shrugged my shoulders, suddenly feeling a little insecure for bringing it up at all. It was already my second time explaining that day…apparently accepting a ride from Leigh Larkin was a hot-button topic.

"Oh." Lysander recalled to himself. "I'm sorry, I can be very forgetful…it's a curse. I was only a little confused about the arrangement but seeing as you live just down the road from us, that makes perfect sense. That was kind of him." Lysander was now beat red and his eyes scanned the room for solace, but I wasn't sure why.

"Yeah…" I was a little put off by Lysander's strange, unreadable ambiance and found myself wishing, as I did during practically every conversation I had with him, that I could somehow find a way past the wall to his thoughts.

Lysander coughed and I glanced over for a split second, catching him with his head down and his eyes glued to the sides, _watching me_, before turning back to the front of the classroom for the budding lesson. Being around him in silence was quite possibly worse than torture and between tacky, rambling small talk and haphazard sideways glances, I found myself watching the clock, waiting patiently to clear my head away from Lysander.

* * *

With the new week came new seating arrangements in Calculus; irrelevant to me either way considering I didn't know a single soul in the classroom and no one made any effort to change that.

My new seat was directly beside whom I had begun to understand was queen-bee of the junior class, a perfect example of the typical 'mean girl' from the movies on television that I had studied before coming to high school. I had observed her the previous week as someone who spoke and was heard, no matter how subordinate her words were, and I hadn't the courage yet to get inside her head and see what she thought of the less-than-perfect new girl, but I had my assumptions.

As I settled in the seat next to her, she turned to get a look at me with an expressionless vacancy glazed across her overly made-up face. I could feel her stare as it made its way down my body, obviously examining me to make sure I wasn't a threat to her reign. Once I noticed her making a conclusion to herself, she tapped me on the shoulder and I turned to meet her perfectly manicured hand as it reached across to my desk.

"Hi! I don't think we've met yet- I'm Amber!" I took her soft, dainty hand in mine and shook it, surprised by her fluttering friendliness.

"I'm Luna, it's nice to meet you!"

"Cute boots, I have the same ones in white!" She tossed her thick, bouncy blonde hair as she breathed out, checking her nails for any chips.

"Thank you…they're really comfortable; I wear them all the time." I was now trying now to make normal, teenage small talk with someone I knew was of important social standing for my own sake.

Amber smiled to herself, seemingly churning something around in her mind before opening her mouth to speak it."I've seen you hanging around Brooke Taylor and her friends..." It was almost like a confession or an announcement and she sat motionless, still examining her hand in front of her face and never once looking over to me.

"Yeah, they're great!" I hoped that Amber might have been a mutual friend or something.

She snorted with laughter and rolled her eyes, giving me a look of pity and disbelief.

"Brooke is a psychotic bitch who thinks she's better than everyone else," She started. I shuffled uncomfortably in my seat, taken aback as my eyes widened by her sudden snap into the 'mean girl' I had been expecting all along.

"-And the rest of them are no better. Castiel is a pussy-whipped coward, Rosalya is a stupid skank, and I swear that_ freak_ Lysander is a serial killer or something; he thinks he's too good to talk to anyone. I'm just waiting for the day he brings a pipe bomb to school..."

Her cattiness was shocking and unsettling. How could anyone think those things about the people who showed me more kindness than anyone ever had? Her words were sour and malicious and I didn't have the stomach for it. Without much thought, I furrowed my brow in an attempt to look serious.

"None of that is true..." My quivering mouth muttered from behind my tongue and I bit onto my lower lip to keep it still. It was easily one of the scariest things I had ever had to say to anyone, but I couldn't let her spout such things and get away with it like I was so sure everyone else allowed her to do.

"_Excuse me?_ I'm_ pretty_ sure I would know. You've been here what…a week? I've known them for years. Trust me, sweetie, they're all trash. You should sit with my girls and I at lunch instead!" She offered, her voice hinged with the slightest bit of annoyance. My mind was busy trying to find the right words and I frantically searched every corner of my body for a twinge of courage.

Thankfully before my search ran cold Mr. Shoemaker clapped his hands to gather our attention and began his lesson without delay. I didn't pay much attention; instead, I crept quietly into Amber's mind, where I was more than _certain_ no one had ever been before. Living my entire life as a telepath, I had noticed a pattern in the meanest people; they were often secretly the most miserable.

_'She's so much prettier than me...naturally straight platinum hair, perfect body...it's not fair. It's not fair that she can make friends within a week while I have to practically blackmail Li and Charlotte into staying around. No one really likes me...no one. She seems nice. Maybe if I can get her away from Miss Perfect and her friends she'd hang out with me instead...I hate Brooke. She took everything from me.'_

Exactly as I had presumed, Amber was insecure and suffering inside. As bad as I felt for her, I couldn't fix her by dumping my real friends to offer her companionship. The best I could do was let her know that I could see right through her. Maybe if I told her what no one else could it would aid her in her search for herself.

Mr. Shoemaker passed out a difficult assignment and allowed us to work on it at our own pace for the rest of the class. I counted down from five and as I reached one, as if on cue, Amber tapped my shoulder.

"Luna, you should really drop those losers and sit with us today..." She whispered. I looked over at her and saw the pain and hope in her eyes. She was desperate for a friend, but she needed to know that this was NOT the way to make one.

Drawing in a breath of fresh air and assembling every last ounce of courage I had left in me, it was time to make a difference in Amber's life; even if she didn't appreciate it right away, which I feared is what would happen.

"Amber…" I breathed out, the familiar exasperation of sweat pooling up between my fingers as I balled my hands together. "You seem like a sweet girl…" It was a start, and the words were slow as molasses.

"Aw, thanks Luna!" She flung her hair as she smiled a bright, toothy crocodile grin.

"-But…you shouldn't have to talk down about people…it shows weakness on your part. You're a beautiful girl and talking badly about my friends won't make your better than them. It only makes you bitter."

This time, Amber's smile had flushed and her tan skin was a shade of ghostly white. She stared at me, her mouth agape and slowly tilted her head. I knew she was considering my words and I could only hope she'd embrace them instead of getting defensive.

Instead, she laughed to herself, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. "I don't know _who_ you think you are but you fit in well with your group of freaks. You're just as weird as the rest of them…" And with a 'hmpf!' of attitude, she turned her head and ignored me for the rest of the class. I couldn't help but overhear her thinking about my words and hoped that she'd mull them over for a while.

My next period class was dubbed 'study hall'; apparently every other Monday everyone was awarded a free block to 'study', or do whatever they wanted, instead of going to class. It was strange, but since I had nothing to compare it to, I'd embrace it just the same.

The library at the far end of the school had been calling my name since I'd arrived at Sweet Amoris High, and I found it the perfect opportunity to go and check out the collection of books without any distractions. As I walked through the doors, the library seemed to beckon me to every corner of its circumference. The familiar, refreshing scent of brand new paperback and worn, aged hardcover swirled together to create the unique perfume worn by libraries everywhere and I savored it.

The main level seemed to target the majority of the school as teen romance, magazines, records, DVDs, and computers surrounded me. The second floor; more accurately described as a loft, was accessed only by a black cast iron spiral staircase and I felt it was a perfect touch to the theme of the loft, which was definitely a little more my style.

Classic literature, adult fiction and nonfiction, biographies, and philosophy books lined the walls and countless encyclopedias stood tall on an old mahogany bookshelf. This part of the library was almost vacant, and as I walked through the rows of shelves I stopped at a globe that sat perched on a table and spun it with my fingers, watching the geographic colors swirl together as one. Touching it again to halt its dizzy spinning, I tapped my fingertip to California and dragged it across the United States to New Jersey- proof of just how far away I was from my seagulls.

Behind me sat a glass display case of dozens of taxidermized birds. Fixing my attention on it I studied each feathered corpse; their vigor for life frozen inside the dead shell of a body and their voices and songs silenced. What good was a bird if it couldn't fly or sing? The things that made them birds were gone and I wondered why the school library felt the need to display their little formaldehyde-dried bodies here at all.

"I'm certain they all died of natural causes...if it makes you feel any better." I heard from behind me. Jolting back to reality and glancing in the direction of the voice I watched Lysander as he walked to my side and looked down. After sharing a brief moment of recognizing eye contact, I turned my attention back to the birds.

I shrugged and nodded my head, uncertain of how to voice my disagreement. I was certain these birds had all been hunted for their beauty and it was a shame.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Lysander looked down to me again and I smirked and giggled to myself. I'd pay him a lot more than that for his.

"I was just thinking about how idiotic these birds look here. They aren't even birds anymore. It's not my idea of decorative, is all."

Lysander snickered to himself. "I agree. I've never liked the bird case but it would seem as though the school thinks it adds a little bit of life to the second floor. If that isn't irony..." he shook his head as he set his stack of books on the table and pulled out a chair.

"Were you planning on sitting?" he asked, offering me the seat. Even though I had initially planned to look at books I felt drawn to his company and thanked him as he pulled out the chair adjacent to mine. I glanced at his stack of literature and lit up when I read the first title.

'Les Miserables' sat at the top of the pile and I reached for it, taking it in my hands.

"One of my favorites..." I muttered, turning it over in my hands before glancing down to the next book that lay face up, 'The Way We Live Now'. I placed the one I was holding back down on the table to pick the next one up as Lysander watched on with a smile.

"Such a good one...took me forever to finish though. I'm sure you like this one a lot..." I was speaking exuberantly now. It was the first time I had ever shared my interests in literature with anyone else.

Lysander looked intent, his arms folded on the table. "I've read it a few times. I like to flip through my favorites when I need a little inspiration." he told me.

'The Count of Monte Cristo', 'Watership Down', 'The Fountainhead', and 'Great Expectations' were among the titles in his stack and I opened each worn copy and flipped the pages with my index finger, the fantasy of each story touching my memories once again. As I tossed the sharp, razor-edged papers, a feisty rim dug itself just a little deeper into my fingertip, slicing the skin and delivering a twinge of sharp, stinging pain. I pulled my finger away and pressed it to my lips before shaking it aggressively.

"Oh, did you get a paper cut?" Lysander watched as I tried to stop the bleeding with pressure from my thumb. I sheepishly nodded my head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Lysander dug through the pocket of his jacket and pulled out a handkerchief, gently reaching for my wrist and bringing it to his range of vision. He carefully dabbed at the blood before wrapping the small piece of cloth around my finger and tying it into a little bow. I snickered, looking down at the ridiculously large makeshift bandage that weighed my tiny finger down and then up to Lysander. He stared eagerly into my eyes and I tried to quell my nervous blushing to no avail.

"T-thanks…" My mouth skewed itself into a perverse, hangdog smile.

"Wouldn't want to get any blood on the pages now, would we?" He snickered, running a hand through his mop of silver hair in a huff.

I shook my head, keeping specific words on the tip of my tongue safely behind my teeth. We made comfortable small talk for the rest of study hall, my eyes never once leaving his gaze as we talked of arbitrary things that held no real significance; mostly books, birds and television shows. Lysander's ambiance was a perplexing one; one that made me relaxed and anxious at the same time, and when the bells rang out across the school I was left wanting more but instead gave him back his handkerchief and made my way quickly down the spiral staircase behind him and in the opposite direction once we reached the hallways.

After saying goodbye to Lysander, I quickened my pace on an endeavor to avoid any awkward hallway contact with Amber and was thankful that the people who were blocking my path as I turned a corner were not to be feared, although their sneaky, chary grins were a little unsettling.

"Hello Luna…" Castiel's lips curled into a smile as he threw his arm around my shoulder. Brooke followed at his side.

"Hi Castiel, Brooke…" I smiled suspiciously, my face scrunching with apprehension. Although I knew they were up to something I decided against reading their minds just yet, allowing the element of surprise to be a reality for me, just like it was for everyone else.

"Wanna go get a drink at the cafeteria before class? We're buying!" Brooke chirped happily grabbing onto Castiel's drifting hand. My shoulders shrugged on their own, serving as a subconscious answer to the request.

"Sure!" I found myself walking directly in between Brooke and Castiel, keeping my arms in to evade getting too close to either of them.

"So…do you like tattoos?" Castiel turned to me to ask.

"Hmm, tattoos? Um, I suppose. I don't have any…but I like art, and if someone is passionate enough about it to forever display in on their body I can definitely respect that."

"On a scale of one to ten how many guys have you kissed? Just curious…" Brooke jumped forward to ask.

"Uh…that doesn't make any sense, little girl…" Castiel snickered, shaking his head. "My special girl…" He laughed to himself. I twisted my face as I mulled about what she was really asking me.

"Um, zero?" I hoped that my answer to suffice to what she was trying to ask me.

"You've never kissed a boy before?" Castiel asked, a smile still spread across his face.

"Not one. Ex-homeschooled-recluse, remember?" I giggled pointing to myself.

"You talk like Lysander…" Brooke giggled.

My questioners shared a giddy glance as we came to the cafeteria and Castiel ran over to grab three drinks. Brooke turned to me. "Sorry about the weird questions…we just want to get to know you better." She shrugged. I waved it off; it didn't bother me but I hoped I wouldn't have to resort to reading their minds for an explanation.

Castiel handed me a bottle of carbonated orange juice and I took it with an appreciative grin. "Thanks!"

"Don't mention it. Now, can I ask you just one more question?" He spoke up as Brooke looked to him with wondering eyes.

"Sure thing, ask away." It felt nice knowing that they wanted to know about me, even if there wasn't much to tell.

"What do you think about my best friend, Lysander? Do you like him?"

I choked abruptly on the first sip of fiery, quenching carbonation and looked up. "W-well, I mean…he's a very polite, i-interesting person…" I tried to explain. Now was the moment I needed to get into their heads, even though I already had an idea of what I'd find.

'_Hopefully we'll be able to set them up since it's pretty obvious Lysander isn't going to make the first move...and I highly doubt we can talk Luna into pushing him up against the wall in the staircase and attacking his mouth with her lips…'_

'_She's totally into him…why won't they admit it? They're perfect for each other!' _

'_Maybe we can get them to come on a double date with us!' _

'_Lys needs to take his own advice and admit to himself how he feels about her…'_

'_No girl is perfect for my best friend but if I had to pick, it would be Luna…she's so sweet and quiet, just like Lys!' _

For the first time in a long time, the thoughts I heard were pounding, loud and agonizing. I rubbed my temples and grinded my teeth as a strong telepathy-induced migraine came on and rocked my entire body.

"Luna? You okay?" Brooke placed a soft hand on my shoulder and her grin fell into a tugging frown of concern.

"Yeah…just a headache…" I muttered, trying not to make eye contact.

"Want some Ibuprofen? I have some in my locker…Lysander gets headaches all the time so I keep it on me because he's so forgetful." Castiel offered. I breathed out with the mention of his name. For the first time since I met him, I was sick and tired of hearing about Lysander.

I wasn't _'into' _Lysander. I didn't even know him! There wasn't a single thing I really knew for sure about him and there wasn't any way I could ever trust him when all I ever knew was using my gift to trust people. My head reeled with fluster, overwhelmed by the entire situation.

I _had_ to figure him out…there was something paranormal about him and I couldn't rest until I knew what it was. I didn't know how and I didn't know when, but I'd find his secrets, or I'd die trying.

If I didn't, he would surely drive me insane.

* * *

**A/N:** You guys are SO awesome. I love each and every one of you and your reviews never fail to make my day. The next chapter will be a big one, so brace yourselves for a wild ride, because it'll only get crazier! :D

On another note, I thought I'd rephrase this and clear up any confusion:

This story, while following its very own plot line, is a spin-off from my previous story, What You Do to Me, which means that the characters from that story are featured in this one, as well as a few _very __minor _plot points.

For those of you that never read and don't want to waste any time reading WYDTM, let me clear just a few things up right here!

**WARNING: This next paragraph contains MAJOR SPOILERS from my story, What You Do to Me. If you are ever planning to read it, PLEASE SKIM RIGHT OVER THE ITALICS! If not, these points should clear up any confusion!**

_-The story centered on my OC Brooke and Castiel's road to love. Castiel went through some major changes (such as dying his hair back to black) in WYTDM and although he is still his same, sarcastic and snarky bad boy self, he's grown up a lot and is VERY sweet on Brooke. Brooke and Castiel have been through a lot together, and small references/inside-jokes from their past will be very occasionally brought up for fans of WYDTM to appreciate._

_-Leigh and Brooke have an extensive past as well, having dated for a brief time. Leigh cheated on Rosalya with Brooke (unknowingly to Brooke, of course), so that explains why Rosalya x Leigh isn't a thing. _

_-Nathaniel and Castiel are friends due to reconciliation over past conflicts concerning Castiel's ex-girlfriend. _

_-Nathaniel and Melody = shipped. _

**Keep in mind this is Luna and Lysander's story. None of the plot points from WYDTM really matter at all, and are only included for fans to enjoy.**


	11. Chapter Ten

**A/N: Okay, I lied… **

**Onnnne more filler chapter before the real drama starts to kick in. Sorry, I didn't realize that it would take a chapter to lay down some of the plot points. Hope you guys still enjoy nonetheless!**

* * *

**Chapter 10: Headaches**

The echoing outcry of an alarm clock is quite possibly one of the most unpleasant sounds in the world, especially when you're fast asleep and not yet finished dreaming. It didn't take me nearly as long to wake up today, and when I came to my feet I shuffled to the window to see that father was already gone. It was the second time this week that father had gone in early, and I was on my own again for getting to school. I had plenty of time to get ready and hopefully arrive to school in a timely manner and by myself, but after pulling my outfit from the hangers in the closet, I noticed a box set aside in the far corner, almost whispering my name.

I quickly threw my arms through sleeves, straightening them out as I walked over to the box and knelt down. It was taped closed and labeled **'LUNA'**, like many of the moving boxes, but I had a feeling as to what might be inside this one and I suddenly wanted nothing more than to open it. Using my fingernails to puncture and peel the tape back, I smirked and looked fondly into its contents. _My journal box_...one of my true, prized possessions, had gone too long without any attention, and knowing I had time to spare I picked up a tiny purple spiral notebook and flipped through the pages to find a mood-lifting entry.

**'Seymour is expected to make a full recovery.' **I started to read, remembering instantly the time that I thought I could play veterinarian to all of the injured or distressed critters by the sea. Seymour was a rock crab with a missing leg, and I was ten at the time. **'He is responding to treatment,**** but won't touch the apples I**** put out for him.' **I obviously hadn't learned yet that crabs don't eat apples, but I appreciated my adorable determination now, and recalled the day that I set Seymour free on the sand and watched him scurry away as fast as he would have with all of his legs to the safety of the quiet, rolling tides.

The teal notebook, littered with little peace signs, was from when I was fifteen. I opened to a random place and began to read. **'I met a boy named Kody today. He taught me to stand and ride on his surfboard and I had so much fun that I forgot to read him at all. He seemed kind and I thought we could be friends but when I read his mind, I realized that he had ulterior motives. I feel bad for running off so suddenl****y, but his thoughts made ****me scared and sad and I probably won't ever wear this bathing suit again...' **

I snickered as I recalled the shocking thoughts of surfer-Kody. He must've been the first surfer I had encountered. It seemed as though by the time I turned fifteen, many of the regular surfer boys that rode the waves by my house wanted to 'be my friend'. I've had so many seemingly innocent surf lessons that I can actually count surfing on my list of useless skills, but I learned pretty quickly that there was a pattern to be found within the minds of most tan-skinned, teenage heart throbs. They simply weren't to be trusted.

Flipping through my pink unicorn diary from the past, I was six again. My mouth tugged and twisted into fits of wild grinning as I read over the innocent ramblings and hilarious spelling grammars of a six-year-old Luna. The flashbacks from the entries sent me into a chipper nostalgia trip.

Reading the entries, I started to think back to the times when it really was just my father and I, and the games we used to play together. My favorite was always Hide and Think, a game my father had invented.

Original, I know.

We'd play around the house or at the shore or the park, and the idea of the game was similar to Hide and Seek except for instead of hiding while the other seeks, you hide and think and the seeker has to find you using telepathy. I'll admit, it's really just an enhanced, unfair version of Hide and Seek, but it was a fun way to exercise our minds and do something with the gift that we shared.

Father _always_ let me win. He'd hide in an oblivious place and think ridiculously clamorous thoughts that gave his spot away and although he thought he was doing something sweet for his precious blonde-haired, sticky-faced little girl, it always made me angry. The game was easy enough and he found a way to make it even _easier_.

On June 1st, 2000, I wrote perhaps the most riveting entry, and focusing hard to read past the chicken-scratch handwriting, I managed to work out the tiny letters.

'**Daddy and me played today at the park but he letted me win again. I don't like it when he lets me win because I know I can beat him.**

**Someday when I get married, my 'hudspent' (husband) is gonna have the gift too. Daddy says I am never gonna get married but I don't care because I want to be like Cinderella because she gets married. My hudspent will play with me because he will have the gift too. The reason he will have to have the gift too is because mommy didn't and that's why she had to go away. She couldn't ever play with daddy and me anyway. I never want my hudspent to go away like mommy did. It made daddy and me sad and I don't ever want to be sad again.'**

My mood had been shot from one end of the scale to the other after reading it over four times, at least. I skewed my mouth to the side, trying to hold back pathetic, meaningless tears as I set the diary back inside the box and walked to the mirror. So much for that good mood I was going for...

I felt sorry for six-year-old Luna. Not only for what she had to endure; growing up without a mother, but also for having to break to her that she'd probably never find her telepathic 'hudspent'. I was okay with that now, but I felt as though I owed it to that memory of a little girl to try...as if trying was even an option. You couldn't just stroll into A.I.M headquarters and ask for a list of eligible bachelors or anything...

I had already come to terms with the fact that love wasn't a possibility for someone like me. I had learned my lesson watching my parents' marriage go up in flames and I knew I could never do what my father did. I wasn't a very good liar after all, whereas my father was, and even he couldn't keep the secret. I did however dream of one day finding another telepath. In the back of my mind, it was my one, real wish. I was grateful for my father, but I figured it would be nice to have someone else to share my soul with and play 'Hide and Think'; someone who wouldn't let me win every time.

The clock on my bedroom wall tipped me off to the fact that my time management skills needed some serious fine-tuning. There were only about twenty minutes left before I had to be at school and I had no idea how long it would take me to walk there. I drew a loud, exaggerated sigh and snatched the strings to my knapsack mid-sprint from atop my dresser, pulling it across my shoulders as I dashed out the door, stopping only to lock it and shove the key in my bag.

The temperature had gradually increased throughout the week and although a bitter chill still clung to the air around me, the sun peeked out from behind the clouds and danced along the bedewed blades of grass, casting an illuminating glare across the neighborhood. It wasn't quite warm enough to go without a sweater but for the first time that week I found my arms at ease, not tugging for my sleeves or rubbing the warmth of friction across my body. I hoped that the upcoming weekend would be just as warm, even though I had no plans to venture outside my house.

Creeping along further and further towards the school I began to sidetrack myself. My attention span wasn't much more than that of a puppy and whenever a pretty bird flew by or a plastic bag pranced across the street like tumbleweed in the wind I couldn't help but to stop and stare. Even as I came to the same stop sign I had on Monday where I ran into Leigh I took a moment to touch my fingertips to the vines of ivy that burned a rash green in a sea of orange and red foliage. I had an uncontrollable eye for detail and wasn't used to going anywhere on a time limit so it was only second nature that I'd take my time and stop to smell the roses. At one point, I literally bent down to steal a breath from a rose-bush with a single, pink rose still intact, holding out from the seasonal transition.

I didn't even notice a charcoal grey Toyota Corolla inching towards me until it stopped completely on the sidewalk behind me. Feeling a twinge of anxiety I turned around slowly and held in a deep respiring breathe as I came face to unsuspecting face with none other than Lysander, who sat at the wheel of the car, his arm dangling out the window and a coy, mysterious smile scribbled along his dancing cheeks.

"You're surely going to be late if you keep dawdling like that, little lady." He charmingly hissed through his smirk. My eyes grew wide as I gasped for air again, trying to think of a modest excuse.

"I can't resist a pretty sight, I guess..." I shrugged my shoulders, pointing to the rose-bush if he didn't get my reference. He most certainly did.

"Neither can I. Now come on, before you catch your death." He nudged his head to entice me into accepting a ride and if I had feathers, they would most certainly have been ruffled. It was an offer I couldn't possibly refuse.

What was it with these Larkin brothers and their rides? I simply couldn't catch a break, but I wasn't complaining at this point. Riding with him to school would give me the opportunity to conduct vital research. You can tell a lot about a person by the condition of their car.

He leaned over the passenger's seat to get the door for me and I awkwardly positioned myself beside him, trying to settle my breathing and feeling dizzy from the intoxicating, sophisticated smell of his car.

"You know, it wouldn't be any trouble at all for me to pick you up in the mornings and bring you to school with me." He suggested. This ride was starting to mirror almost to a tee the ride I had taken with Leigh just days before.

"My father usually brings me; he's been working strange hours. Thank you for offering though...and for the ride." I muttered, feeling flustered. He looked over to me and smiled, sending me even further off the radar.

"You have my number...you can call me anytime you need a ride. The company would be nice. Castiel and I used to ride together and to be completely honest it's been hard to adjust to the silence since he started going with Brooke instead."

"It must've been difficult for you to get used to Brooke and Castiel's whirlwind relationship. I've noticed they're usually attached to each other every chance they get..."

He looked over at me again and his face dropped into a look of solemnity. "Yes...things are different. Whereas Castiel and I used to spend almost every day together, now it's all about Brooke. I'm fortunate for the occasional two hours of playing video games together. He's still my very best friend and I understand that people grow up and things change, so I'm not bitter. I'm happy for him. Not a lot of people find a love like that have...they're very lucky."

I wordlessly agreed with him wholeheartedly. There was no one out there for me and seeing Brooke and Castiel together only rubbed more salt into the wound.

"The weather is beautiful today..." I let my tongue do some casual twisting to veer us off the depressing topic of love. Lysander chuckled to himself over something I would have died to know before turning to me.

"Yes, it is. I don't know where this warm weather came from but I like it..." He glanced suggestively for the third time over at me and I was beginning to feel a migraine coming on already. Why did I twist his simple words into cryptic symbolism?

"I had a little in my pocket from California. I figured I'd warm this dreary place up for a week or so." I giggled, trying to make light of my severe apprehension.

Lysander laughed and skewed his mouth to the side, seeming to chew my lame joke a little longer than anyone normally would. "Well I certainly owe it to you, Luna."

"Don't mention it!"

Lysander smiled and snickered to himself again and I couldn't stop myself from staring as he kept his eyes on the approaching school in the distance. What could he possibly be thinking? Why was his hair so perfectly windswept? Why did his eyes twinkle and glisten so vibrantly? Why was I thinking like this?

Ripping my eyes off him like suction-cups, I focused them on the school and sighed to myself.

"Tired of Sweet Amoris already?" He asked as he pulled his car into the parking lot. I shook my head, knowing that my sigh had been evoked by something completely different.

"It's growing on me, actually..." I smirked, glancing up to him with a playful wink. Lysander immediately drew a breath and turned beet red.

Was I _flirting _with him? No! I didn't even know _how _to flirt! What was that wink all about?

"Glad to hear it..." He murmured, his voice cracking a bit. "Amoris is a wonderful place to live."

"Well, judging by my house, the school, and the hardware store in town, it seems nice..." I shrugged, watching him turn the car off and take his keys.

"You've not gone exploring yet?" As he asked me, his incredible eyes did that thing again...the thing without a name, and I wanted to stare at them forever. Instead, I shook my eyes away with my wordless 'no'.

"Well, if you're ever interested in taking a ride around town I'd be happy to show you around." He smiled and appeared to be watching my body language as I processed his offer a thousand times over in my mind.

"Y-yeah, that could happen..." I stupidly stammered. Did that even make sense?

He was grinning to himself as he leaned over to undo his seat belt. "Yeah...um..." He cleared his throat as I watched him run a crestfallen hand through his hair. "Let me know...you can text me, or..." I'd never seen him so speechless before. Had I said something wrong?

"This weekend...maybe..." I tried to make the plans solid, but as I processed the fact that I was talking about spending time with Lysander alone, I melted away into a puddle. We were rambling, stuttering messes...the both of us. What in the world was going on here?

"Th-this weekend? Like um...Saturday? Or Sunday...if Saturday doesn't work for you..." Lysander tried to suggest. I didn't know what else to do, so I just started giggling. Lysander looked on, uncomfortably snickering along.

"Saturday is fine."

"Saturday then. There isn't much...but what we do have here is great. You'll see."

Saturday Lysander was going to show me around town. In his car. Alone. Just us. For some strange reason I couldn't help but think in the back of my mind that I had already seen the best thing that Amoris had to offer.

What exactly was going on in my mind? Had my fascination in Lysander developed _into something else?_ I truly hoped not...I couldn't afford to have _feelings_ for Lysander. Not only was it not an option for me to pursue him...I didn't _know_ him. _I couldn't read him, and therefore I couldn't trust him. _When you go your whole life blindly trusting everyone it becomes natural. For me, things were different. I didn't know _how_ to trust. I've never trusted a single soul in my life...I've never felt the need to trust their words without having to validate them by reading their thoughts and the idea of it was terrifying. Did I even feel comfortable going with him on Saturday?

Lysander walked with me to my locker and then to our class, where we talked in between lectures as we sat side by side in our little corner, just like every day. My worries seemed to slip away when I stared into his eyes. He cast a spell on me when we talked, and my anxiety about him washed away completely, only arising to raise hell once he was gone from my sight.

Between classes, I tried to avoid Lysander as I made my way down the hallways, keeping my eyes to myself. As I turned a corner, I noticed Brooke and Nathaniel standing in the middle of the hallways passing out flyers about some kind of fundraiser.

"Hey girl!" Brooke cried over the muffled voices of the rest of the student body as they transitioned to their next classes. She stood next to Nathaniel and in front of two tall boys who shared an eerily similar facial structure. She one-handedly motioned for me to join them and I weaved and ducked through the crowds towards her flailing arm.

"Have you met the twins yet?" Nathaniel asked, seeming to steal the words out of Brooke's mouth. The boys turned at the mention of me.

"Hey, I'm Alexy!" The blue-haired, vibrantly dressed twin chirped as he boisterously took my dangling hand in his and shook it. "And you are _adorable!_"

I flushed red and flashed him a twitchy, nervous smile. "I'm Luna, it's a pleasure!"

"Luna, _huh_? I'm Armin, and the pleasure is _all_ mine…" The raven-haired twin cooed, placing his long, thin-fingered hands on his hips with a confident smile.

"Watch it, Armin. This cutie has Lysander's name written all over her! Am I right?" Alexy laughed wildly. My eyes threatened to pop right out of their sockets. I was shocked into a reeling fit of humiliation by his rashness.

"_E__-e__xcuse_ me?" I muttered under fleeting breaths.

"He's kidding." Brooke hissed, elbowing Alexy in the side. I ran my fingers haphazardly through my hair and tried to collect myself.

As the twins turned to laugh about something with Brooke and Nathaniel, I took a moment to creep inside their minds, starting with the 'blue twin'.

'_Lysander and Luna sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Eeee! So cute!__'_ I had heard quite enough and grit my teeth together contemplating if I should actually look at Armin's thoughts at all. I had nothing to lose at this point…

'_New-__girl is sexy as hel__l but__ Lex is right…she looks like the fancy-pants type that Lys would go for. __I wonder if he's tapped that yet__? __Na__h, __that's not his __style. I __can respect that…but I don't see how he can resist." _

Why did I insist on listening to Armin, again? My head went from a light pounding to a hard, excruciating agony and I laid my hand across my forehead as my eyelids flickered. The voices around me definitely didn't help my growing migraine, either.

"It was nice to meet you, sweetie! Sorry we didn't get to talk much, but next time Brooke and I go shopping you have _got_ to come with! Your outfit is amazing; I must know your secrets!" Alexy leaned forward and pulled me in for a clutching embrace. I didn't know what else to do other than laugh nervously as his hold nearly asphyxiated me.

"Yeah, we'll surely see you around some time, Luna." Armin smirked with a wink, obviously unable to hold back his hormones. I gave him the satisfaction of a grinning nod, trying to see past my gripping headache as they walked off down the halls together.

Brooke laughed and shook her head. "They have no filter for what they say out loud…" She giggled, turning to me with a smirk. What she didn't know though, is that they did. Most everyone's thoughts were much worse than whatever they were willing to say.

I rolled my shoulders and tried to brush it off. "We're having a concert here at the school, did anyone tell you?" Nathaniel handed me a flyer and I peered down at it, shaking my head.

'**Join us for a night of fun, music, and CHAOS!' **

"They're letting you play here at the school?" I asked with a grin, my thoughts galloping off into Nowhere Land again with redundant visions of You-Know-Who.

"Yeah, we had to come up with a fundraising scheme somehow. What could be better than doing what we love to raise money?" Nathaniel laughed.

"It took a lot of persuading for Cas and Lys…they didn't like the idea of performing here at the school, but they've warmed up to it." Brooke giggled with a smirk. "So, you'll get another opportunity to see Lys in all of his glory!"

I couldn't take much more of the innuendos. Why did everyone around me see this invisible chemistry between Lysander and I?

'_C'mon Luna…Lys is totally crazy about you! Can't you see that? I guess I have no place to talk…__now I know how Lys__ felt last year…' _Brooke's thoughts now pushed their way into my mind. My tuning abilities were faltering as a result of my intense migraine.

'_Lysander and Luna would make a pretty cute couple…' _Oh Nathaniel…not you, too!

I tried hard to steady my mind and tune out their thoughts, but as my migraine grew more severe, the thoughts around me came pouring through my weak, weary walls. I held my hands over my ears, but of course, any efforts were useless.

'_That's that new girl…I heard that she and that weird kid, Lysander were a couple.' _

'_I'm so tired already! I don't want to go to Algebra…'_

'_I'm so PUMPED for the football game this Friday!'_

'_She's nothing special…I don't know WHY Lysander talks to her and ignores every other girl in the school…'_

'_Amber Wood is looking fine today, as always…'_

'_That Luna girl is weird…I wonder if she's met Lysander Larkin yet? They could be weird together…' _

'_I'm craving a grilled cheese sandwich…'_

'_Luna Broderick is pretty…are she and Lysander dating? If not, I should totally ask her out!'_

'_Lysander Larkin is way too hot for her…'_

My eyes watered through pressed eyelids and I now cradled my head in my hands, unable to even lift it at all.

"Luna! Are you okay?" I heard Brooke shout over the voices. The hallways were finally starting to thin, but the voices were still loud and all around me.

"I-I just have…a h-headache…" I tried to mutter.

"C'mon, let's get you to the nurse!"

Nathaniel and Brooke escorted me down the halls as I tried my hardest to quell my near-paralysis, looking up and biting my lip, dangerously close to chewing right through. Once we came to the door simply labeled **'NURSE'**, I turned to them, swallowing my discomfort and painting on a straight face.

"Thank you…" I nodded, dismissing them.

"You're sure you'll be okay? Want me to stay with you?" Brooke's crestfallen face broke my heart. I hated making anyone worry on my behalf and I tried to add little details of content to my faked expression by painfully raising my eyebrows and showing my teeth.

"I'll be okay, promise!" I stuck my hand out, reassuring them of my safety. After exchanging multiple heartening goodbyes, I finally managed to get Brooke and Nathaniel to walk off towards class while I sheepishly turned the knob and pushed open the door.

It was a spacious infirmary, and the confines of the room protected my head. I had the strength now to tune out the nurse and her patient and I stood at the door, observing my surroundings. Three long, slender beds lined one wall with an additional two positioned adjacent. The cabinets on the walls were presumably filled with supplies and medications and jars of cotton swabs, popsicle sticks, and cough drops lined the counters below them. I hovered close to the door for a moment while the nurse, who stood on a step stool, reached up high for something on a shelf. Without even looking at me, she knew I was there. She took from the top of the shelf a few disposable thermometer covers and started across the room, now acknowledging my presence.

"Have a seat right here and I'll be with you just as soon as I'm done..." She motioned to the grey synthetic leather bed as she made her way with a thermometer to a green-faced student holding a small, plastic trash bin close to her mouth. I took a seat and crossed my legs, waiting tolerantly and grinding my teeth in a silent endeavor to subdue the reeling pain of my headache.

My eyes scanned the room for anything to hold my focus away from this pounding migraine. A colorful poster illustrating a purple monkey wearing sunglasses with the words **'Smoking stinks!'** in vibrant black letters encased inside a white speech bubble caused my nose to crinkle as I snickered quietly to myself. Another more serious flyer about the importance of checking your moles for cancer made me subconsciously raise my hand to my own moles beneath my eyes and rub them in an attempt to ease my worries. Mine, thankfully felt nothing like the lumpy melanoma ones in the pictures must have, and as I started studying the different types of popsicle sticks in jars on the counter, I felt an uneasy presence wash over me and shifted my eyes to the doorway.

"Ah, Mr. Lysander, let me guess...another migraine?" The nurse chuckled to herself as she checked the sickly student's blood pressure. Lysander leaned against the doorway with a smirk as he nodded his head and walked through, sitting down to wait his turn at the spot beside me.

"_Miss_ _Luna_…" He cooed in a soft, sing-song voice as he captured my full attention. "Fancy seeing you here. Are you alright?" He cocked his head and I turned to get an eyeful. I _was_ okay until he came along...

"It's only a headache. I get them all the time, especially around so many loud voices..." I told him, instinctively rubbing my temples and shutting my eyes to temporarily ease the pain.

"Me too...it's just another on my long list of curses." He snickered, accidentally placing his hand down on my leg before snapping it back like a trap. His face was pale white and his eyes bulging from their sockets as he stared down at the spot his hand had touched and then back to me.

"I...I'm sorry!" He quickly spat, searching my face for a reaction. I giggled and shrugged my shoulders very sheepishly.

"It's alright..." _Wonderful_…as if my Lysander-encounters needed to be any more awkward...I figured that clumsy mistakes were beneath us, but then again, I shouldn't have been surprised.

"Am I feverish?" I felt my head with a giggle, trying way too hard to make him feel better. His touching my leg _definitely_ didn't offend me, which made me worry even more.

"H-huh?" Lysander was now a nervous wreck and I felt terrible.

"It looked like you burned your hand when you touched me..." I continued to giggle.

"_Oh_. Well, I could try to think of a witty comeback, but they all seem to result in me calling you hot." He chuckled, before stiffening up and swallowing his words. "N-not that you aren't...I mean, not that I don't think so…" He was a complete mess again, and I knew exactly how he felt.

"It's alright; I get what you're trying to say..." I tried to use a soft, soothing tone in my voice and he drew a deep breath before pushing his forehead into his palms and ruffling his hair with his fingers. He was obviously feeling a strong migraine much like mine and trying to quell its annoying pangs.

I instinctively reached out and touched his cheeks, turning his face to me. His eyes were broad and helpless as he stared, wordlessly begging for an explanation to my actions.

"This always helps mine pass..." I told him as I brushed my fingers across his face and to his temples and began to rub them gently with my fingertips. I wasn't thinking things through; acting on pure impulse as I stared into his eyes with a smirk. His face was vacant as he gazed back, wide-eyed and blinking.

Once I fully realized what I was doing, I recoiled and snickered nervously. "I um…hope that helped." I cleared my throat. Lysander raised his fingers to the spots mine had touched and nodded his head.

"Y-yeah, thanks Luna." he nodded, shifting his unsteady eye contact back and forth between the ground and me.

_Wh-what am I doing?! What I had just done was NOT acceptable! What was with this newfound intimacy?_

I had to keep my wits about me because so far, my wits were as good as splattered all over the sides of a trash bin, just like that poor girl's stomach contents. Lysander was visibly still a little dazed, and I all at once brought my entire body together, crossing my arms and legs and closing up into a little lady-like ball of impulses.

"I guess I just can't stay away from you today, hmm?" Lysander snickered, looking over at me cautiously. I glanced to him, making desperate, begging eyes and hoping that he would elaborate.

"We keep running into each other...the way to school, class, and now? It feels like I've been with you all day long." He graciously explained further. I giggled lightly, covering my twisted lips with a protective hand.

"If I didn't know any better, Mr. Larkin, I'd think you were following me..."

"Maybe I am..." Lysander knew exactly how to play this game and it drove me crazy.

"Luna, sweetie, I can see you now..." the nurse suddenly called over to me. I couldn't help but think that her timing was impeccable.

She wasted no time taking my temperature, which was a little high. Father has always said that it is normal for our body temperatures to be above average, since our bodies work harder than normal...or something like that. The science of it never made a whole lot of sense to me and it was just something I had become accustomed to.

"100.1…you've got a fever." The nurse read aloud. 99-100 was average for me, and I shrugged my shoulders silently.

"I was only wondering if I could have some ibuprofen. It's just a little headache. I get them a lot…" I tried to explain.

"No nausea? Light-headedness? Fatigue?" She pressed on. I promptly shook my head, no, to each question.

"I'll give you some ibuprofen, which should reduce the fever, but I'd like you to stay and rest for just a little while…" She stood and walked over to the cabinet, taking a bottle and rattling a few pills out. She placed them on the counter and filled two tiny paper cups with water, popping two pills into Lysander's hand and two into mine. I threw them both to the back of my throat and gulped down the water, looking over to Lysander, who did the same.

"I'm assume you need a minute to lie down as well, Lysander?" The nurse asked him. He nodded his head and picked his feet up onto the bed, sprawling his long, gangly body across and folding his hands onto his chest, resting his back against the wall. I picked the bed beside his and lounged my legs straight across the cushions, sighing with comfort once I settled in.

"I do hope you'll be feeling better soon, Luna." Lysander muttered, his eyes closed as he spoke.

"Same to you…I know headaches are never fun."

"No, never. We're still on for Saturday?" He now opened his eyes to look over to me.

"Of course."

He smiled to himself and shut his eyes again. "Looking forward to it already..."

* * *

**A/N: You guys are amazing and as always, thank you SO much for your support!**

**Hopefully this next chapter will be the one that kick starts the plot, so definitely stay tuned and I'll be back soon! XOXO**


	12. Chapter Eleven

**A/N: SUPER LONG CHAPTER ALERT.**

**This is the longest chapter I've ever written. I hope you'll like it as much as I do! This is where the plot starts to pick up!**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: You Found Me**

"Hopefully my schedule won't be as sporadic next week..." My father sighed as he stuck his key into the ignition and started the car. I rubbed my eyes, a layer of fatigue still smothering me relentlessly.

"I'll be alright, father..." I yawned, "I've meant to spend some time in the library anyway. I can finish all my homework and then just walk home." I was trying to reassure him that his inability to pick me up after school today due to his extended hours wasn't a problem, but he still felt guilty. Father has always been guilty. He carries the guilt of everything from my mother-situation to the fact that I don't have a car, and in turn his guilt contributes to my very own guilt. It's a vicious cycle.

"Once I start making more money I promise the first thing I'll do is get you your very own car!" He promised with a smirk. Again with the guilt…

"I'm fine without one, promise!" Giggling, I leaned forward and opened the glove box in front of me, taking out a peppermint and placing it on my tongue. The fresh, cool sensation made my mouth water and helped wake me up as I tossed it around in my mouth.

"Maybe one of your friends will give you a ride home..."

Watching the trees past by out the window, I shrugged my shoulders. "They most likely all have plans tonight...it is Friday, after all..."

_And tomorrow was Saturday_. I still hadn't conjured up enough courage to ask my father about going with Lysander, hoping things would somehow just fall into place. My mind had been sealed shut as of late due to the notion that father and I had reached an unspoken understanding. I was in high school now, and my thoughts were growing up along with me. He didn't need to hear his teenage daughter's silly thoughts, and I hoped he understood that. I was doing this for his own good, anyway.

Father pulled his car up to the curb and let me out, bidding me farewell with a kiss on my forehead. Stumbling onto the pavement, I shuffled towards the double doors leading into the school, my ritualistic nervousness quelled only by my steady gait and deep breathing exercises.

The quiet rustle of the autumn wind whisked my long, straight strands of golden hair around and into my face and I tried to keep moving forward as I reached my hands up to brush the annoying pieces away. With my vision temporarily impaired, I was walking half-blind sighted. As I pushed open the doors to the school with my back, fussing with my hair and detangling pieces from my long eyelashes, I tripped cumbersomely over my own feet and fell back onto the hard, unforgiving linoleum. With the wind knocked straight from my gasping lungs, I rubbed my thighs and sheepishly looked up, thrashing the hair out of my face for the last time.

I should have easily foreseen what was to come next, knowing my luck, but I was shocked and humiliated just the same to look forward and see a pair of brown leather boots in front of me. I followed them up to long legs, a smirking sneer, and glowing eyes and I was five shades of scarlet.

"Clumsy girl..." Lysander teased, pulling me to my feet all at once by my shoulders and shaking his head.

"I um...I tripped." It was all I could muster as I bit onto my lip and timidly chewed it.

"I noticed... Are you alright?"

_No, I was not alright. _I was embarrassed beyond anything humanly possible and tried not to make any eye contact whatsoever. Looking down to my gawky feet, I nodded my head. "Thank you..."

"Come; let's get you to class in one piece now, shall we?" He held his arm out to me, inviting me to grab on to it.

"Thank you, Lysander…" I giggled nervously. "-but I think I can make it without an usher." I was flustered quite enough. I didn't need to strut these halls on the arm of the most beautiful boy in school, too.

He withdrew his invitation back in to his side and shrugged. "I'll believe it when I see it..." He was playing games, and I couldn't stand it.

All day he played games.

That Friday started out no different from any other day, with awkward, dreamy glances and sweaty palms to spare. We shared snippets from our notebooks with one another during English and he offered poetic compliments and cryptic mumbles. His eyebrows never seemed to stay still when we talked, and I was a nervous, shaking wreck…nothing new. By lunchtime, I was quite ready to explode from the tension between us.

What on earth was going on? What was this game and why were we playing? What was the objective? Who was winning? I had questions that might always go unanswered and all day my heart and my head bickered back and forth. I'd agree to ignore his tugging slanted smiles in the hallways but then exchange one right back when they came. It had become practically impossible to stop the games that I wasn't sure I wanted anything to do with, yet loved to play all the same.

They say that Fridays are usually the slowest days of the week, but this one in particular seemed to fly right by and while everyone packed their things in a frantic dash for the weekend after the beckoning school bells rang out I stayed behind and waited in my seat for the rush to die down. I was toggling with the idea of going straight for the library or trying to catch Brooke before she left for a quick conversation or two. In my mind, I knew that more than anything I secretly wanted to "run into" Lysander, and with the mere thought of it, I decided that a little fresh air would only do me good.

Outside the air was surprisingly warm and crisp and I relished in the glow of the sun, letting it dance across my tanned shoulders for possibly the last time before winter came and planted its roots in for good. It had to have been at least sixty degrees outside now; not California warm, but beautiful compared to what the weather had been like just days ago. As I strolled quietly around the school I kept my eyes open for any sign of Lysander and friends, but with the mass amounts of frenzied students rushing around, skipping for their cars and piling onto the buses eager to start their weekends, finding any of them was a task not worth being trampled to complete. I would have to wait for my weekend to start but I didn't mind; my expert-leveled procrastination definitely needed the study time. First though, I ached for a brisk walk and the school's garden seemed like the right kind of medicine. As I rounded the corner, I set my sights on my destination and almost fainted when I saw who else was staying after school to spend time in the garden. Was he a flame, reducing me to a hopeless moth drawn to his light?

I crept slowly up, being cautious and quiet. I _almost _wanted to spy on him...I wanted to watch what he did when he was alone. My research had been ludicrous so far...maybe this was the opportunity I had waited for. Watching the subject in his natural habitat was always the preferred method among the world's greatest scientists...

Lysander sat on a marble bench surrounded by wilting, colorless flowers that had lost their vigor to the harsh cold front of last weekend. His legs were crossed and they served as a tabletop for his notebook, where his entire focus was completely dedicated. He was so enthralled by his writing that he didn't notice me as I inched closer and closer to him. Hiding behind a tree just feet away from the perfect hydrangea bush, I felt an exhilarating rush of adrenaline coursing through my veins. I was _spying_ on Lysander...and I wasn't even sorry about it.

I watched to make sure he was still just as distracted before making a mad dash and ducking behind the bush. My panting, fleeting breaths were loud and gasping and the beat of my adrenaline-fueled heart threatened my position behind the bush. Quelling the noise wasn't easy, either, and placing a hand firmly over my heaving mouth, I crouched into a ball and peeked over the leaves to get another glimpse of him as he silently switched between writing and looking up to the sky with an expression as deep as the ocean. He was beautiful, but I already knew that.

As I watched the subject of my fascination with intent, taking notes in my head, I didn't notice the lax hum of the hornet that was living out its last days among the twisted branches of the hydrangea bush. The tenacious little bug all at once came barreling at me in a martyr's attempt in protecting his home. Threatened and with obvious plans of stinging, I instinctively let out a yelp before falling forward through the bush and into the clearing of the garden. I pushed my body backwards with my hands and practically crab-walked in fear of being stung across to the greenhouse, where my back hit and I realized what I had done. I shut my eyes as tight as they would go, humiliation washing over my entire body as I banged my head against the Plexiglas. I could _feel_ Lysander staring at me; I could only imagine what he was thinking and I found that for once in my life _I honestly didn't even want to know what must have gone on inside his head._

When I finally peeked out from behind my eyelids, I saw that my assumptions were correct. Lysander sat at the bench, alert and perplexed, staring straight at me. I didn't know what to say or do so I just let my tongue go, hoping it would show me the way out.

"H-hi Lysander..." I could have jumped off the face of the earth at that moment. _Hi Lysander?_ I was really going to try to act like that didn't just happen?

Lysander snickered, placing his notebook down on the bench and walking over to me with an outstretched hand. I took it, my palms probably soaking his own with the clammy sweat that covered them as he pulled me to my feet.

"This is the second time I've helped you up today...you really must be more careful. Are you alright?" He asked me first. Besides a red face and a beyond-damaged ego, I would live. I sheepishly nodded my head.

"I know it may be none of my business but I simply must know what you were doing in that bush." Lysander's eyes twinkled as he raised his hand to his chin and held his elbow locked in place. _That look again..._

I knew I couldn't make up an excuse. I was the worst liar on the face of the planet...I hardly even knew HOW to lie. I couldn't lie to Lysander...I never could.

"Do you want to know the truth?" I sighed, throwing in the towel. Lysander bent down to catch my eyesight and I peered up into his technicolor eyes as he smiled at me. "You can tell me anything, Luna."

My eyes fell to the ground before being caught again in the trap of his enticing gaze. I didn't know how I'd word things, but I wanted him to know the truth, even if it was only indirect. A definition for the game we played was close, I could feel it. The truth would only shed more light.

"This is going to sound ridiculous, so bear with me." I started, rubbing my palms together in a nervous fit. "I have a peculiar talent that allows me to figure people out almost to a tee. I'm a very good judge of character and I can read, _per se_, anyone and everyone..._except for you_." I hoped he would understand what I was trying to say.

Lysander began to chuckle to himself, pressing the tops of his fingers to his forehead and shaking his head. _He was laughing at me..._

"It's stupid, I know. I want so badly to figure you out, but I can't and it's not something I'm used to." I tried to explain. He kept laughing, almost in disbelief.

"No Luna, that's not stupid at all. I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing because I can't believe what you just said." He quelled his laughter and looked up to me, staring into my pupils. "I've been going through the same thing _with you_. I can read people...their body language, their um..._tendencies_..." He started to stammer. I felt my skin start to twitch and convulse. _I knew where this was going_. "I can't even _begin_ to figure you out, Luna...it's honestly driven me mad."

I stared at him, right into his soul. All I could do was stare, blink, and breathe. He straightened up and stared back to me, squinting his eyes as if he was looking for something very small within my irises. I knew then that the answer I had searched for since the moment I laid eyes on him was right in front of me and I wasn't afraid anymore to do what I should have done when I first met him.

"Can I try something?" I asked him, tilting my head slowly and not once breaking eye contact with him. His lips parted into a warm, unsuspecting smile and he nodded his head, never once looking away.

I closed my eyes and unblocked my mind for the first time in the presence of Lysander. I cleared my mind of anything else, making room for the only words that mattered and projecting them to him the way I would with my father,

'_Can you hear me?'_

When I opened my eyes, I knew right away that I had my answer.

Lysander stepped back, his eyes as wide as saucers, the left one twitching on cue like a metronome. Veins in his forehead and neck bulged and spasmed and his entire face flushed of all color, turning a pale, sickly white. His mouth fell open and his bottom lip quivered. He was no longer smiling and laughing, he was speechless, shocked.

My teeth chattered with exhilaration. My bones had been ignited with the rush of understanding as I realized that standing before me was the most precious and incredible thing in this world. I wanted to jump up and down and hug him and tell him how much I had missed him my entire life. I had so many words on the tip of my tongue that I had saved for him throughout my entire lonely life.

_Lysander...a telepath. Lysander was a telepath. Just like me. He could hear my thoughts. He could hear me!_

_I found him_ and I couldn't remember a time when I was happier. I wasn't all alone in this world after all. Lysander knew my secret and I knew his. This whole time we had struggled with the same hardships and we never even knew. How could I have been so stupid, overlooking the obvious fact of the matter?

"It's okay Lysander...I'm just like you. We're the same..." I told him calmly as he looked as though he might just break into a thousand pieces. I could literally see his skin shivering as his whole body quaked and convulsed. He looked deep into my eyes and tried to move his trembling lips to speak.

"Y-you...you can hear people...you can hear their thoughts t-too?" He stammered, as unsure as I had ever seen him. I nodded my head, my grin glowing.

"Everyone's but yours. You don't have to block them anymore. I won't keep my thoughts blocked from you ever again." His mind was still encased in an impenetrable fortress and I wondered why he wouldn't let me in...wasn't he thrilled to have found another?

"B-block?" He looked lost and utterly confused. Surely he knew that his thoughts were still blocked, right?

"I still can't hear you. You don't have to let me in...It's just, I'm so happy to have found you."

Lysander closed his eyes. "I want to let you in, Luna...more than anything. Show me how..." He begged me, his eyes becoming red and glossy when he opened them to look at me.

How were his thoughts blocked in the first place if he didn't know how to unblock them? I'd ask questions later...after all, I was now sure he could see them anyway.

"Relax your mind...breathe in, let your walls down...focus on telling me something using only your mind." I instructed him, repeating the mantra to him as he shut his eyes tightly, drawing in a long, deep breath.

_'Luna...what am I?'_

His inner voice was beautiful. It echoed through my mind as I could only assume the voice of an angel would. I closed my eyes, a single tear pushing its way past and rolling down my cheek as I embraced his mind and held onto it, never wanting to let go. After all this time wishing more than anything that I would someday find someone to share my soul with, here he was...and he was _beautiful._

In that moment, the only thing on my mind was playing with him. I had always told myself as a child that I'd play my favorite game with the telepath I'd someday find and now that he was here in front of me there was nothing more that I wanted more than to realize my childhood dream. Maybe it was my inner-six-year-old poking her head out or maybe it was my subconscious, so nervous and unsure that she just wanted to run and for him to follow, but either way, my feet weren't going to stay still.

_'I'll tell you everything...if you can catch me!' _I thought aloud, letting out wild, nervous laughter and spinning on my heels. I took off, my instincts for some reason moving me to the dense forest behind the school. As I ran at full speed, my legs carrying me over the grass faster and faster, I threw my head back and giggled into the sun. I could hear Lysander's jumbled thoughts behind me and knew he was chasing me, just as I had always wished.

_'Wait! What are you doing?!' _I heard him shout to me in his mind. The feeling of his thoughts inside mine was ecstasy and I couldn't stop giggling as I made my way through the brush and into the woods, jumping over the thorn bushes and fallen branches and sprinting down through the density. A new piece of my soul had emerged and I no longer cared about the trivial things in life. I just wanted to run and laugh and think with him.

_'Follow my thoughts!' _I giggled, coming to a clearing and ducking behind a large, thick oak. I watched as Lysander slowed his frantic gait and looked around, outstretching his arms and turning in circles.

_'Lyyyysander...'_

He whipped his head in my direction and I poked my head out, winking at him before taking off again, leading him deeper into the forest. I could feel confusion, wonder and amazement as it poured from Lysander to my own body and I kept him going, working for the information he sought. I pulled my body behind another tree and this time Lysander wasted no time pursuing me. He was learning the game, and he positioned his body in front of me so I couldn't escape and lightly grasped my shoulders, holding me still and looking deep past my eyes to my mind.

_'What am I?' _He asked, his expression fleeting and begging. _'What are we?'_

I smiled, shaking my head and looking up to him. _'You don't know? You're a telepath!'_

As he stared at me, seemingly dumbfounded by tacking a name to our abilities, I ducked under him and kept on running. I wasn't done playing with him yet. Not by a long shot. The serious talk that we so desperately needed to have could wait.

I ran further into the dark woods and my strides only bounded on faster and faster. As I ran, I looked down and saw that my path was starting to become illuminated. I redirected my stare to the course ahead and noticed a clearing in the trees, light cascading through the branches. I loped straight for the light, jogging through the brush and right through to what truly seemed like a completely different realm.

I had no choice but to stop and catch my breath as it was taken away with the discovery of my surroundings. I found myself enclosed by beauty and I stood, turning my head to take it all in. I was at the edge of a large, green field that held its mouth open to the bluest, pristine diamond skies. The trees were scarce here, but the willows that did stand tall in the middle of the field canopied a little slice of security from the sun that seemed so much closer to the world. A bantam, bubbly creek ran through the side and the only sounds besides the gales that sang songs of the summer that hadn't gone out of style just yet was the crackling, rushing of the stream over rocks and through the earth.

In my life, I had seen beauty in the rolling, glowing waves, golden sand and infinite horizon of the ocean. I had observed it, drew it, and wrote about it, but never had I seen a place quite like this. Suddenly in comparison, the ocean was a blur. The smell of summer still lingered, captured and kept safe from the rest of the world. It was as if I had found another dimension and compared to the rest of the town of Amoris, it was unbelievable to me that we were in the same place at all.

Surely these types of things only existed in movies...but here I was, surrounded by perfection as if it had been painted onto the earth, every detail etched and stroked with flawless precision. Had we entered some kind of secret portal? By now, I could believe anything.

Lysander caught up to me, halting to a stop as he slowed his pace.

"What is this place?" I asked him aloud as if the discovery had made me forget all about our telepathic abilities. He looked to me with even more surprise on his warn, tired face.

"I...I don't know. No one ever comes through these woods..." He told me. I could hear his thoughts winding and churning about the beauty of this spot just as much as mine had.

We walked out further into the field together, taking in our surroundings in awe of everything that was happening to us. I glanced over to Lysander as he stood and observed the creek. He was gorgeous...the most beautiful piece of the perfect portrait. He peeked over to me with a twitching, nervous smirk.

_Oh no_...Lysander could read my thoughts...how could I have forgotten already?

_'You're beautiful Luna. So, so beautiful.'_ He thought in response to my seemingly secret realizations. He walked over to me as I stood paralyzed, doe-eyed and gawking, grabbing for my hands and taking them in his, holding them tight. I looked down at his gesture, my eyes wide and surprised as he raised a gentle, soft hand to my face and stroked it lightly, taking a strand of my golden hair and tossing it through his fingers. '_I need to know everything about you...about us. Please tell me...'_

I smiled and led him to sit with me in the soft, warm grass. With my bent legs extended Lysander sat directly in front of me, intertwining his legs in between mine. We had much to discus; that much was certain.

'_Well,'_ I thought with a flustered grin. _'Haven't your parents taught you anything about who you are?' _I tilted my head as Lysander's smile fell apart again, his face twisting into confusion.

_'My parents? They don't know...does your father know about you?'_He was clearly begging for answers. I gasped, my eyes growing wide.

_'You mean __your parents aren't telepaths? Either of them?'_ I was growing just as perplexed as he was now, slowly coming undone at the seams.

He shook his head. _'I thought I was the only one...I thought I was alone...'_

At that moment I realized the severity of the situation. Lysander _was_ the myth...a telepath born at random to a normal family. He had no idea what he really was. I didn't even know what he was...

_'Myth? What do you mean? Is there something wrong with me? Please...I just want to know what I am. I've waited so long to find you, Luna...' _He was desperate. There was no way he was quite like the telepath that father had described in his recollection of the legend...he was just like me.

_'Don't worry Lysander...you're perfect. There's nothing wrong with you...you've never hurt anyone before, right?'_ I asked him. He shook his head, much to my relief.

_'Never...'_ He assured me.

I didn't know where to start, so I decided that before I told him anything at all, I needed to know everything about him.

_'You've never met another telepath?' _

Lysander drew a deep breath in and I witnessed his entire life flash before his eyes. It was obvious that I had asked the right question.

'_For as long as I ca__n remember I've been this way, __hearing the secret thoughts of everyone a__round me. I was a quiet child; __so quiet because I never needed to ask questions or find answers. I didn't say my first w__ord until I was five years old; __old enough to realize that I was different, and old enough to feel afraid and insecure of what someone would think if they knew I could hear their secrets. I never told a soul...I knew I was a freak.' _He started, switching between looking into my eyes and glancing around at the ground. I could tell he had never visited his past before this very minute, yet he wasn't uncomfortable. He seemed relieved.

_'I grew up on a farm in the country side of New Jersey and didn't ever have any friends except for the __animals on the farm...and Leigh, of course. H__e teased me relentlessly about __my appearance. He'd call me a freak, as if I didn't already know that__, except his words never hurt me because Leigh was always secretly jealous of me. I wished I could have told him that there was nothing to be jealous of, but he wanted to look as unique as I did. He wanted to stand out and was tired of people telling me how beautiful and differe__nt my eyes were __which is why he sta__rted making outlandish outfits. This led him to learn t__he__ fashions of the Victorian era and I was his mannequin;__ I used to stand there for hours while he sewed and stitched his clothes onto me. It was something that eventually brought us together, __hence__ why we wear what we wear.__..if you've ever wondered__.' _He kept on going, and I was lost in every thought and the silence we shared was incredible. The feeling of talking to someone else using just my thoughts was the most amazing feeling in the world and I could see that Lysander felt the same exact way.

_'We ended up here when Leigh opened the shop and I met Castiel in eighth grade. He was the first person whose thoughts didn't scare me and we quickly became best friends. There have been so many times that I've wanted to tell him. A part of me knows he'd probably understand, but I'd never want to risk what might happen if he didn't...'_

I shook my head, scooping up his hands in mine and looking straight into his eyes. _'You were right in not telling him, Lysander. Not telling anyone was the best thing you could've ever done. I wish more than anything I could've understood like you did when you were so young...'_ I could help but to think.

_'Your mother...she wasn't a telepath, was she?' _Lysander asked me, tilting his head and rubbing the tops of my hands with his thumb. I shook my head and bit onto my lip, glancing down to the grass.

_'I was young. I didn't understand and neither did she. Father says she went crazy. __I know i__t was my fault. I don't even know where she is...or if she's even still alive. I could __even __have __brothers and sisters, but I'll never know__...'_ I hadn't talked of my mother in years and my eyes were already swelling with tears. Choking them back, I knew I needed to stop. It was Lysander's time to talk, not mine.

'_I'm so sorry, Luna. No one should have to go through that…'_ Sympathy lined his glowing eyes as he reached for my face and ran his thumb across my cheek, wiping a tear that I hadn't noticed escape from behind my eyes.

'_No. No one should have to go through what you've been through…at least I had __my __father. You've had no one…you've been all alone for too long.'_ I needed to make this about Lysander, not me. I'd been waiting so long for him…I wanted to hear everything he had to say and the last thing on my mind was my own life story.

'_I'm not alone anymore, though…' _ Lysander tilted his head, his hand trailing to my cheek. He held my face in his hand and looked into my eyes. I tried to stay out of his thoughts, a little timid of what I might find judging just by his intense gaze.

I turned my head, my entire face flushing and burning up.

_'So, you've taught yourself to block and tune out, I'm assuming?'_ It was time to change the subject.

_'That's what I'm assuming as well. I can choose what thoughts I want to hear, if that's what you mean' _

I nodded my head in response. _'It took me years to perfect it.'_ Untamed giggles rolled off my tongue as I rolled my eyes teasingly.

_'I've been doing it ever since I can remember. I guess I'm the better telepath then, hmm?'_ He was teasing and I admired his wit and charm in such a situation. He winked at me playfully before coming to another thought. _'Have you ever tried to quit?'_

_'Quit using the gift, you mean?'_

Lysander let out a fit of snickers. _'Is that what you'd call it? I'd love a slice of your optimism, silly girl.' _I laughed along now, shaking my head.

_'I've always considered it a curse...father practically makes me call it, 'the gift'. He's all about embracing it.'_ I rolled my eyes.

_'I've called it my curse,__ too.__ I thought maybe I__actually __was __cursed__…__I wasn't even sure I was human at all! I'm an a__l__bino telepath...can you see how I've felt like a bit of a black sheep my whole life?'_ He was still laughing and his smile was intoxicating to me. I couldn't stop watching it flex and tug at his cheeks.

_'I've tried to quit on two occasions and both have assured me that maybe it is a gift...in a way.'_ He started again, and I could feel another story coming on.

_'When Castiel and I entered the eleventh grade he met Vanessa. She seemed nice enough, and Castiel's thoughts were becoming more and more private when they started dating. I knew we were growing up and now that our thoughts__ were growing up with us.__ I figured I didn't need to listen anymore. Vanessa and__ Castiel dated for around six __mo__nths and __then broke up bitterly when w__e found out__ that she had used him the whole time for his parent__'__s mon__ey and his talent with music__. Before skipping off with her own band and stealing a good bit of our mu__sic,__ she tried to seduce Nathaniel and Castiel walked in on the whole ordeal. Needless to say, all of that could've been prevented if only I had kept my mind open and alert for trouble. Castiel was so br__o__ken__...he went through a rough patch __and I __carried the guilt of his hurt for a long time…' _ He was passionate when he talked of his past and I assumed it was because he never had the opportunity to before I came along; I was more than happy to listen.

'_When Brooke came to Sweet Amoris, things changed drastically. __Castiel fell in love with her the moment he met her and it to__ok her__ nine months to realize it. Their __thoughts were__ torture.__ I just wanted to slam their heads t__o__gether and force them to kiss!__ Towards the beginning, his thoughts were so overwhelming to me that I couldn't bear to li__s__ten any__more, so I tuned him out. When Leigh started dating Brooke…' _

'_Wait, Leigh and Brooke dated?' _I had to cut in…this was news to me.

Lysander giggled and nodded his head before starting again. _'Yes__, for around a month or so. I didn't want to hear my brother's thoughts AND Castiel's thoughts about the same girl, so I quit listening again. Leigh and Rosalya dated in the past as well, and I was under the impression that they had long since broken up but I found out the hard way that it was not the case. Leigh ended up cheating on Rosalya with Brooke and it didn't end well for anyone. It could have easily been avoided if__ I had dipped into Leigh's mind and I felt__ respons__i__ble for that, as well. I've been extra nosy even since, and my abilities were able to bring Brooke and Castiel toget__h__er in __the end; proof that I can do some good with this 'curse' of mine…__' _ He grabbed for my hands at the end of his thought and looking down at them before back to my eyes. I had never seen someone so at peace in my entire life.

'_You're proof, Luna.'_

Lysander and I sat for what seemed like forever, silent as air, but vociferously telling each other everything, sharing our souls and our lives through our minds. I told him of my life before him, he told me more from his own past, and suddenly, we were one. My hands never left his and the feelings that I had for him were unlike anything I'd ever felt for anyone. I suddenly wanted to give Lysander the world if I could. I felt devoted to him and I could see that he felt the same way. He enchanted me.

This was _so_ unlike me. Never in my life had I done anything even half as rash and erratic, but the only thing that felt right anymore was Lysander. Awoken to a new world, I had found a piece of myself in his heart. As he held my hands in his, I knew that things between us were different. Things would always be different from this point on in my life because I had found him. He needed me, and I needed him. All our lives we'd wished and waited for each other and now that he was here, my heart reached for him and never wanted to let go. While I stared into his striking eyes, my gaze slowly trickled down to his equally beautiful lips.

_'I've__ never kissed anyone before…__I've__ never__ wanted to until this moment right now.'_ His thoughts were rattling and alarming, but it was the truth, and that was all our minds knew.

_'Neither have I...'_ I didn't know how to word the fact that I wanted to kiss him with all of my heart.

_'I've never wanted anything more in all my life...I...I want to kiss you, Luna.'_

_'Then why don't you?' _

I wasn't afraid...not at all. It was as if a heavy load had been lifted from my shoulders. My lips ached for a sensation they'd never even known and I could never describe the effect that Lysander had on me in that very moment. From his knees, Lysander leaned in very slowly. The wait was agonizing.

When his lips touched mine, ever so gently at first, I knew it was meant to be. I knew that my life had led me right up to this moment. My entire body welled up with passion, and I was all at once addicted. He cautiously raised his hands to my face and I urgently placed mine on the back of his head, pulling him in even further.

The thoughts that ran through our minds as our lips danced on each other's were electrifying. My entire body trembled with ecstasy as I pressed it against his and we kissed each other over and over. He cradled me in his arms and we couldn't stop...we wouldn't stop for anything. At that moment, as we kissed each other right down to the quicks of our lips, I loved him, and he loved me, and no words were needed because the secrets held safe in our minds were flowing together to create something absolutely beautiful.

Ripping my lips from his to gather air in my lungs once more was painful and I rested my forehead against his and drew deep, heaving breaths. He grabbed for my hands again and looked up into my eyes with every ounce of love he had in his body to give, before kissing me on my forehead and running his fingers through my hair.

"Luna…" He whispered so close that it tickled my nose. Our eyes stayed tightly shut as we drew breaths together, as one. I was the second one to open my eyes, because when I did, all I saw was emerald and gold, all around me. His eyes whispered sweet nothings for a fleeting moment before he drew in air to speak. "You have no idea how long I've waited for you…"

"Yes I do…" I grabbed onto his vest and pulled him in for more as my lips sparkled on his like diamonds.

I loved him. I never thought it was truly possible to love someone so much in such a short amount of time; I never thought it was truly possible for me to love anyone at all but I did, and I knew it.

"I love you, _too_…so much." Lysander smirked as he leaned in to kiss me again. I told him I loved him a thousand times over while we explored each other even more.

'_I've loved you since the moment I saw you and I'm sorry for walking away from you…I couldn't stand the fact that I couldn't read your mind…'_

'_I've loved you my whole life, Lysander…even since I knew what love was I've longed to find you…' _

'_I'm not afraid anymore…I'm so happy.'_

'_You'll never be alone again, I promise…'_

Speaking to each other as we kissed was incredible; a luxury that made telepathy a true gift. Now, I pitied the simple people who would never experience a kiss like this and held the gift with all that I was. It was what brought us together. All at once, my life was new and different and I was diving in completely blind.

As I pressed my lips to his again and again, my whole entire body was covered in a warmth that put the fast approaching winter to shame and I couldn't remember a time I was warmer; compared to the blistering heat of the California shoreline, Lysander's kiss was by a long shot superior.

I pulled away once more only because my nose led me to the crook of his neck. Burying my face in his shoulder, he reached his arms to draw me near and I shifted onto his lap to bring myself even closer. He was all around me now; all I could smell was him. Fresh laundered linen, a hint of some kind of fancy, sophisticated cologne, and something else...cinnamon or vanilla maybe, swirled together to create the most exhilarating smell on the planet..._Lysander_. I lost myself as I buried my head deeper into him, breathing in his scent for as long as I could as he stroked my hair gently.

"You smell nice, too...what is it you're wearing?" He whispered into my ear. I shivered as chills ran continuously down my entire body. I had to rip myself away from my spot on his neck and into the line of fire; eye contact would be the death of me.

"It's just sweet pea body spray...nothing fancy." I giggled, shrugging my shoulders.

"There's more...though. You've got your own brand, Miss Luna...it's intoxicating." He was staring right into my soul and I blushed.

_'I could say the same about you...'_ I thought loudly with a smirk.

'_Sweet, beautiful__ girl…' _Lysander thought as he slowly turned his head, studying me, his eyes drinking in the view as mine did.

'_I love your eyes, so much. I've dreamt of them every night since I met you.__' _ I raised my hand to his face and stroked him beneath his eyes. He closed them tight and then looked back to me.

'_You mean that? I've always been so insecure about them…'_

'_I mean it...and I know how it is. Mine are…' _ I looked down to the green grass and envied its color._ 'They're black. I don't even have pupils.__ Yours have so much color…' _

He lifted my chin to meet his gaze and shook his head with a smile that threatened to light the night sky_. 'Your eyes have more color in them than I've ever seen…they reflect everything perfectly__. __I've never seen anything like it before. I've written a lot about them…about you. Those are the poems and songs I never wanted you to see…" _ He was blushing and I was in love with him.

I dragged my finger across his jaw line, tracing his heart-shaped bone structure to get a feel for its perfectly chiseled design. He turned his head into my hand and laughed as I cupped his chin.

I wasn't thinking about the past or the future. Everything had happened so quickly and there was no denying that I was crazy about Lysander all at once. It was as if I was a new person.

As Lysander leaned in to kiss my forehead, my phone began to ring from inside my knapsack, which had since been left a few strides behind us beside Lysander's bag and forgotten about. I got up and ran to it, the rest of the world coming back to me only now.

"I'm on my way home now. Did you get home okay? Anything in particular you'd like me to pick up for dinner?" It was father, of course. I swallowed the lump in my throat and walked over to Lysander as he stared at me, crestfallen and concerned.

"Um...I'm actually still at the school." I coughed out.

"Still? Why, it's nearly seven! The school stays open that late?" My father seemed shocked and intrigued all at the same time.

"I um..." Where would I even start? Should I tell him now of my discovery? Should I mention Lysander at all?

"Lysander..." I started with my favorite word, lost and scrounging for others. I didn't know anything else. "I ran into Lysander. We've been hanging out...he's a...he's a telepath." …And the award for the most clever and witty reveal of the century goes to me!

Father didn't speak. Instead, he was silent and followed his silence with wild laughter. "Luna..."

"I found him, father. His parents aren't...he was all alone." I was spewing bits of information at him now, frantically trying to explain everything all at once; well, almost everything.

"I'm on my way to get you now...we can talk about this later." He seemed serious; concerned, even.

_'I'll drive you home!'_ Lysander's begging thought drove itself into my mind, his face pleading of me to accept.

"Lysander is driving me home..." I told father.

"Good. I can meet him and we can sort things out...I'll see you in a bit then, Luna."

"See you..." I locked up my phone and placed it on the grass below me, drawing a sigh.

_'D-do we have to leave now?'_ Lysander's voice was glazed with disappointment. My face fell for the first time in hours and I skewed my mouth to the side, nodding my head somberly. He reached for me and pulled me into his embrace.

"I forgot about everything...about the world. You made me forget. I thought we could just stay here forever..." Lysander whispered softly into my tingling ears.

"Me too..."

* * *

**A/N: WHAM!**

**And just like that, Lysuna is shipped. Just because they're together now though does not mean BY ANY MEANS that this story is over.**

**Oh no…it's JUST beginning. You have no idea what I have in store for you! **

**I hope that none of you feel like this happened much too soon. If you do, I assure you that this is all but my intention. Lysander and Luna need each other for what's to come, believe me. *evil laugh***

**This story is nothing like What You Do To Me. Whereas I wanted you to wait until the very end for the climax of bringing Brooke and Castiel together, this story will have an entirely different climax…multiple different climaxes, actually. **

**XOXO**

**- EXACTLYAMANDA**


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve: It's Official**

**Part II **

**Lysander is a telepath, and Luna is at all once undeniably in love with him. ****At long last they have found each other, and appropriately have a lot of catching up to do, but what will everyone else think of the new, whirlwind romance?**

**Lysander is a telepath who was born at random; something that isn't supposed to happen. Are Luna and Lysander really as similar as they think they are?**

* * *

'_Wait…'_ Lysander tugged on my hand, gently pulling me back to the soft grass. The imprint left at the spot I had sat was begging to be filled again and I could hardly resist the temptation; it surrounded me and I was a kid in a candy store.

Frivolous giggles wormed their way through pursed lips as I shook my head, leaning in to him. _'It's wise to get me home on time, Mr. Larkin. My father is not a patient man…'_

'_I…I just wanted to ask you something. I'll get you home in good time, even if I don't particularly want to.'_

He pulled again at my hands, his long, thin fingers intertwining through mine as his eyes whispered the words he planned to tell me. _'I've never done this before, so please forgive me if it all sounds absurd…'_

"Nothing you say could ever sound absurd!" I exclaimed aloud, tossing my eyes in circles at his cryptic, nervous murmurs.

He leaned in, brushing his smooth palm delicately across my cheek as he pulled me in toward his heady lips. I pressed mine against them as if I had done it my entire life and in that moment, his thoughts were louder than ever. _'Beautiful girl, you've stolen my heart. I need to know that tomorrow I won't wake up and this will all have been a dream. I've dreamt of you all my life. Now that you're here and you're real, I can't ever let you go. I love you, Luna. Will you be mine?'_

I couldn't help but to smile on his lips as I deepened my kiss in response. _'What do you think?'_

Lysander pulled away and planted a sweet, tender peck on my forehead. "This is where my life begins...right here, with you."

Gathering our things and starting through the brush and briars in pursuit of the real world was a chore and we sulked through the dense vegetation, hand in hand and lost in each other's thoughts. I secretly hoped we'd get just as lost in these woods and Lysander matched my thoughts exactly as we reluctantly trudged on, our feet carrying us to the wide soccer field, through the school grounds and across the parking lot to Lysander's car. Ever the gentleman, he wasted no time in opening the door for me and even tried to fasten my seat belt, which I declined immediately, playfully swatting his hand away and demonstrating that I was more than capable in doing it myself.

The ride from school to my house was no longer than five minutes, and my heartbeat was so fast and erratic it could have easily stood a chance in a race against the car. I found myself hoping that father would be kind to Lysander but my realism knew to expect the latter. My nervous thoughts put Lysander into a panic and as much as I wanted to quell his anxiety, I knew I had to be honest with him.

'_Are you excited __to meet my father?' _I turned to him with a smirk, solely for comic relief.

'_I'd have __to meet him someday…today is just as good __a day __as any, I suppose!_'

_'Try your very best not to let __him__ see your thoughts of me...'_ I warned as we pulled in to the driveway. Lysander took a deep breath, nodding his head and acknowledging the instructions.

My steps were sluggish as we shuffled closer to the house, _closer to my father__- _and I breathed in as much fresh air as possible before pushing open the front door, letting Lysander squeeze by first. The shrill whining squeak of the door's rusty hinges hissed through the sound barrier, causing me to wince as I pulled myself through the threshold and into the foyer.

Father anticipated our arrival and sat perched on the stairs like a hawk, his legs crossed. He held a long, smoldering cigar in one hand and an inquisitive smirk curled up to his cheeks the minute he laid eyes on Lysander. We stayed completely still as father came to his feet and waited in agony, watching his unhurried, nerve-wracking waltz across the hardwood. With each step, the heels of his shoes clicking with the floor echoed throughout the entire house and for just a moment, the world was quiet, thoughts and all.

Lysander was much better at controlling his thoughts than I was. In his head, hushed murmurs about homework, writing, and his newfound title of telepath twirled around for my father to hear. Nothing of our passionate hours underneath the willows was visible and I was utterly impressed, keeping my own mind blocked due to lack of self-control.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Broderick." Lysander bowed his head and stuck out his hand for a polite shake. He was trembling, obviously not sure how to act in front of a girl's father, and I could feel his anxiety intertwine with my own.

My father's lips curled into a manic grin and he pulled Lysander by his arm in for a surprising embrace, holding his cigar out with one hand and patting his back with the other. Lysander's first instinct was to hug the stranger right back and he did so in an adorably delicate, polite-as-possible way that made me love him even more.

I had fully expected father to present himself in an intimidating way as he usually did; this behavior was new and refreshing for me.

"Please, my dear boy, call me Miles. We have _much_ to discuss. Follow me..."

Lysander turned around to me and I shrugged, easing him on with the flick of my wrist through the living room and down the hallway. We were headed straight towards uncharted territory and my gait slowed as we came to the last door at the end of the long corridor..._father's __office_. As he opened the door and ushered Lysander through my feet planted themselves firmly onto the hardwood, knowing very well the rules about entering the office.

"Come, Luna...it's alright." Father winked and smiled at me. I nodded sheepishly and bit onto my lip, shuffling inside his roomy, desolate office after Lysander. It wasn't much more than a desk, computer, some chairs and filing cabinets, all surrounded by off-white walls; nothing mysterious or illusive at all.

"Sit." he instructed us, waving his hand to the red-cushioned seats set against the wall. We took our spots beside each other and father sat at his computer chair, putting his hands on his knees with a smile.

"It seems as though my silly child has stuck her curious nose in someone else's business yet again..." He laughed, winking at us. I was red and reeling, scratching awkwardly at my neck.

"I-I'm very grateful to Luna, sir." Lysander stammered, nodding his head and peering at me from the sides of his eyes.

"I wasn't surprised that the moment she met you she became enthralled in figuring you out. My daughter gets her tenacity from me and I knew she'd crack your case eventually." He was embarrassing me, but his light nature and Lysander's gracious laughter eased the tension.

"I'm sure you've had a tough life, Lysander, and I'd like to know a bit about you. Luna's brought home stray cats, birds, and even crabs before, but we've never had a stray telepath!" I brushed my hands haphazardly through my hair, hoping that he'd stop with the embarrassing cracks and cut to the chase.

"Are you comfortable with answering a few simple questions?" Finally, we were getting somewhere.

"Absolutely." Lysander affirmed. He was clearly eager to talk with my father and he leaned in, their eye contact uncanny.

"Splendid. How long have you been hearing thoughts?" He started, unplugging his laptop from its charger and placing it on his knee. He moved his finger around the track pad and clicked a few buttons before looking back up to Lysander.

"As long as I can remember, sir. I'm assuming I was just born this way."

"And your parents _definitely _aren't telepathic? Grandparents? Aunts, uncles? No one?" Father switched between the looking up and quickly typing away. Lysander shook his head.

"No sir. I've tried researching it on the internet and in books my entire life. I've always listened and looked for people like me in crowds…everywhere I went I searched for answers. I was convinced that I was the only one in the world." Lysander maintained his perfect eye contact with my father and I was envious of his calm, collected demeanor. I could only imagine that my father was just as impressed as I was but I wouldn't know, as his thoughts stayed blocked completely.

"Well, you're certainly not the only one in the world, although it may feel like that sometimes. Right now, there are 9,456 of us accounted for…or well, 9,457 now."

Lysander's eyes grew wide, and his mouth popped open as he nodded his head. "Wow…really? T-that's amazing…" I smiled, suppressing the urge to grab his hand and squeeze it.

"You'll find that there's much about the world of telepathy that you would've never expected. A.I.M, The Association of Illusive Minds, is our 'senate', per se. They keep track of all the world's telepaths and make sure that our abilities stay secret, among other duties. It is vital that telepathy stays confidential among only those who have the gift. You've never told anybody, right?" Father was nothing but serious business now and I assumed that he was trying to start a case file for Lysander to send to A.I.M.

"Never. I didn't want to scare anybody. I've been convinced that I'd have an angry mob chasing me with torches and pitchforks through the streets if I said anything at all!" Lysander chuckled.

"That's very good to hear. Now, I'm sure you've always wondered what exactly makes you a telepath…" He was eager to go geek and share the science of our gifts with Lysander and Lysander was equally as keen to hear it, leaning in and nodding his head.

"The human mind is a complex and incredible entity, Lysander. It's a shame that the average person uses only a small percentage of it, leaving the rest uncharted territory. It is A.I.M's belief that telepathy is accessed through an otherwise unexplored part of the mind and that we are born with that part prominent and working properly. Telepathy has also been widely recognized as a hereditary mutation, but there have been accounts of telepaths like you…I'm not sure if they are true, though."

Lysander was hypnotized by every word. He rested his elbows on his knees, his hands covering his mouth as he bobbed his head and confirmed every word my father spoke.

"What do your mental abilities consist of?" Father asked, his fingers hovering over the keys in front of him.

"Reading minds, sir…and communicating with others, like Luna. That's all."

"So you've never hurt anybody? Never influenced somebody to believe or do something for you? Erased anyone's memories?" Father was asking questions that he_ must_ have already known the answers to. Lysander's eyes bugged out of his head, the bridge of his nose furrowing as he shook, no.

"He's just like us, father." I couldn't help but to blurt.

"Luna, _please_. I _have _to ask." Father grumbled, flashing me that 'stop-it-right-now' look and rolling the wasted ash of his cigar in a brass ashtray on his desk.

"No sir, never. T-telepaths can do those things? They can hurt people?" Lysander immediately spoke up when he realized that his silence had gotten me into trouble.

"I-I'm not sure of that. I heard rumors about telepaths causing excruciating pain...even heart attacks and fatality, using only the power of their minds, but it's probably all just talk." Father brushed it off, seeing as it obviously sparked Lysander's interest. "Now, if I could have your full name and address please...I'm going to get you into the database, if that's alright."

"Lysander Larkin..." Lysander stammered, starting to spell out each letter of his name, appropriately. "850 Hydrangea Drive…"

"Oh, so you live just down the road then! _How convenient…_" Father laughed, clicking away at the keys of his laptop. "Middle name?" I leaned in, eager to hear it.

Lysander turned red and looked off, his eyes scanning the room uncomfortably. "I um..."

"You don't have one?" I asked him before my father had the chance to. Seeing my wondering eyes, his face fell and he sighed, defeated by my curiosity.

"I do...but it's quite embarrassing." He chuckled timidly, running a crestfallen hand through his hair as he did any time he was nervous.

_'Mine is Avery...'_ I told him silently in my thoughts. His shuddering lips puckered into a smile and he turned to me. He didn't care that my father watched on.

'_That's beautiful...'_ Lysander thought, before whirling back to my father.

"My middle name…It's B-..." He awkwardly started, chuckling before opening his mouth to start over again. I leaned in intently…it couldn't be that bad, could it?

"Banquo." He sighed, finally. My father smirked and I hoped that Lysander didn't notice his quelled giggles as he turned his attention to his computer. I leaned over and put a hand on Lysander's shoulder.

"You weren't kidding when you said your parents were fans of Shakespeare..." I acknowledged. Lysander shrugged and rolled his eyes lightheartedly.

"I guess it's quite fitting, seeing as I'm..." he couldn't quite spit it out, but I knew what he was going to say. "...white as a ghost."

I pursed my lips into a pout and suppressed the urge to kiss his red, crimson cheeks. "You're not as white as a ghost, Lysander!" _'…You're beautiful.'_

Was father listening? I didn't even care at that point and I soon got my answer when he coughed loudly, squinting his eyes at me and shaking his head.

"_Okay_ Lysander…" He blurted, looking down at his computer screen before back at us. "You're officially a part of A.I.M's elite database of illusive minds. How do you feel?"

Lysander released the air in his lungs in a huff of triumph, obviously flustered by the entire ordeal. He wasn't alone anymore and I knew from experience just how amazing that feeling truly was.

"Thank you, sir. It's unbelievable to know that I'm not the only one. I-is there anything that I have to do, you know, now that I'm an 'official' telepath?"

Father chuckled, shaking his head as he set his computer down on the desk. He came to his feet and Lysander and I stood in unison as father ushered us out the door and into the hallway. "Just live your life as a normal person would. The only responsibility we have as telepaths is to keep our abilities a secret at all costs."

He led us out to the foyer and coming to the front door again I had to accept the fact that my time with Lysander was about to end, even if only just for the night. I had only just found him…how could I expect myself to stay away from him until tomorrow?

"It was an honor meeting you, Mr. Broderick. I can't thank you enough." Lysander extended his hand to offer my father a handshake. Before he took it though, I watched as an idea popped into his mind and he recoiled, placing a hand on Lysander's shoulder instead and gripping it firmly.

"There's just _one more thing_, Lysander..." Father stared into his eyes, drawing his cigar to his lips and puffing at its tip. He blew the smoke up towards the ceiling fan and I stood by, eavesdropping into their active minds.

_'It's quite inevitable now that you and my daughter end up together...don't deny this. You may think me a qu__i__et, simple__ man but I assure you, I am not. I'll have my eyes on you__ like a hawk watches a mouse__, and if you so much as lay one ill-intentioned finger on my little girl or hurt her in any way, you'll be wishing you had the abilities we dis__cussed in my office;__ I can make your life a living hell. This is not a threat, Lysander. It's a promise. Reme__m__ber this, and we'll be in good standing.'_

"Father!" I blurted all at once, shocked by his terrifying words. Lysander's eyes were as wide and vast as the moon as his bit onto his lip and nodded his head. Father ignored my exclamation and continued to stare right through my poor Lysander.

"Is that understood?" He spoke now, his voice gruff and brawny.

"Yes sir, absolutely."

My father's serious dagger-stare melted away into a calm, almost forced smile and he patted his hand onto Lysander's back, but it wasn't exactly a friendly pat. It looked just a little _too_ firm for my taste. "Good man." He winked, and I couldn't help but to think the entire ordeal was sickening and cryptic. My subconscious told me to take Lysander by his dangling hand and run straight for his car, but that scenario only seemed to end badly in my mind.

"It's a daddy-thing, Luna." Father turned to me with a playful wink now as I stared at him, shocked and humiliated. "Lysander will understand someday when he has a daughter of his own."

"Uh…let me walk you out, Lysander." I was at a complete loss for words and wanted nothing more than to escape into the outside world with Lysander. He nodded and turned to my father once more, showing bravery beyond anything I could comprehend.

"I look forward to seeing you again, Mr. Broderick." He stuck out his hand once more for a shake, to which my father latched on like a remora and shook with a smirk.

"Likewise. You have a good evening, Lysander."

Guiding my poor, probably scarred and terrified Lysander out the door once and for all I promptly closed it and then turned to him, burying my face in my sweating palms, utterly mortified. _'I'm so sorry…'_

I felt Lysander sling an arm around me as we walked down the pathway to the driveway. He pulled me in close to his side and planted a tiny kiss on the top of my head as we walked. _'That was expected, Luna. Your father cares about you, is all. I'd want the same for anyone who hurt you. We can agree on that.' _

'_Still...I feel as though he could have gone about it differently…' _I protested, not about to let my father's harsh rudeness go unaccounted for. Lysander didn't seem to dwell on it nearly as much as I did, and we reluctantly walked to the driveway, stopping at the driver's side door at his car. I sighed, and on tiptoed feet I wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me in by my waist for a hug.

'_I never wanted this day to end…'_His thoughts were somber and longing, and we lingered in each other's arms for what seemed like an eternity. I didn't want to let him go, I only wanted more.

Taking one last breath of his intoxicating scent into my hungry lungs, I crooked my neck to look up at him, my desire for his kiss loud and amplified. '_Do you think your father is watching out the window?' _Lysander asked, turning to glance back to the house.

I smiled deviously and pulled him in by his soft, cotton ascot, touching my nose to his with a chuckle. _'Yes.'_

My lips lunged for his and stuck like glue, pouring all the love I had in my heart of hearts to him through what seemed like the last first-kiss that we'd share. The only thing that made me feel slightly better was the fact that there were only more kisses awaiting me in the near future.

'_Are we still on for tomorrow?'_ Lysander reminded me after we pulled away. He cocked his head to the side and ran a lazy hand through my hair, twirling and tossing the strands through his delicate fingers.

My face light up and I smiled, nodding my head manically. _'Just as long as my father allows it, which he will, I'm sure.'_

'_You haven't asked him yet?' _Lysander smirked, shaking his head playfully.

'_Can you blame me?' _

'_Silly girl…'_ He breathed a sigh and tossed his head, his long bangs falling into his face. The sunlight shone through, lighting up his porcelain skin and illuminating every chiseled feature for my eyes to drink up as he looked down at me. His green eye was dim with disappointment, but his gold one shimmered with the promise of the future, and he pulled me in for one last kiss to top it all off before taking a step back, having to force himself from kissing me again and again.

'_Text me as soon as you can__ so that I have your nu__m__ber. I'll call you__.__ Or you can call me. I just know I'll want to hear your voice when I get home…__'_ He spewed as his hand hovered over the door handle.

'_I will__. __I love you, you know.'_ I wanted so badly to close my eyes and wake up to tomorrow already.

'_And I love you, Luna.__' _He was obviously struggling to restrain himself from coming to me as I backed away from him, waving my hand with a fallen smile.

'_Tomorrow__ is ours__.'_ He winked and flashed me one more smile before pulling himself into the car, leaving me breathless again. I stood meaninglessly on the lawn and watched as he fastened his seatbelt, put his keys into the ignition, and looked up, his stare lingering for one more moment before he started down the road.

Left blushing, wonderstruck and alone, I missed him as soon as his car was out of sight. Now, I could I understand the turmoil of a narcotic fiend; I was coming down from the most spectacular high and the withdrawals were painful. I was hungry for my next fix just as soon as the last one was gone, and I would've done anything to have my drug back.

As a temporary fix, I reached down and fished through my pocket for my phone, letting my fingers type the words I had forgotten to say.

'_Lysander :) Thank you for the best day of my life.'_

* * *

**A/N: I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this story so much!**

**I hope you guys like fluff, because there will be a ton of it before the real heavy drama kicks in and once it does, you'll be WISHING for that fluff back! ;D **

**XOXOXO**


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen: Ours**

Lysander Larkin..._my boyfriend. _I had a boyfriend; Lysander Larkin, a telepath just like me. A beautiful, incredible, amazing telepath. Pinching the top of my hand was superfluous- I wasn't dreaming. Reality was all around me and _so_ much better than anything I could have ever dreamt up on my own.

I was _in love_, and I couldn't have possibly expected it to feel like this. My stomach was beyond butterflies- it was more like a dragon, flapping its mighty wings over and over and breathing fire into my soul. A part of me wanted to vomit all over the place as my stomach just couldn't seem to settle, but another part quelled the sickness to make way for a state of pure and total euphoria that nothing could quite match up to. My entire body welled up with a comfortable warmth and I felt as though if I didn't grab on to the staircase railing when I walked inside the house, I'd surely float away.

Father stood in the kitchen, aimlessly leafing through a stack of mail on the counter. I was dizzy, but my eyes scanned the foyer and then fell on him again and I watched as a coy smirk curled up onto his cheeks and he slowly turned his head to me, resting his elbow on the counter and his head in his hand.

"So..." He sighed, giving me that I-already-know-so-you-might-as-well-tell-me look. He was so obviously cornering me, but I couldn't bring my tongue to form the words he wanted to hear and kept my mind shut tight.

I set my eyes to the ground and shrugged my shoulders. "So..."

"So, what's going on with Lysander?"

"He-he's a telepath?" I was beating around a very small bush and there wasn't much hope for repressing the truth any longer.

"_Luna..._" Father sighed, obviously a little peeved. "You _know _what I'm getting at."

"He's a really nice person, father. W-we can relate to each other..." I stammered, trying to explain.

"I get it, Lulu. You're seventeen. I should've known you'd start dating soon; I just hoped you'd be more open with me about it, is all." Father took steps towards me now, crossing his arms and shrugging his shoulders.

I swallowed the growing lump in my throat and nodded, "I...I mean, it only just happened. I don't know..."

"It's okay Luna...However, I do reserve the right to know some things. We've never really had _the talk _before, and I just want you to know that you don't need to be um, you know...fooling around with boys. You're too young. I expect you to behave responsibly."

My eyes bulged and I clasped my hands over my ears, shaking my head. "U-understood!" I quickly peeped, not wanting to hear any more of the awkward birds-and-bees stuff.

"I hope so. I'll be nosy if it means I can protect you from making mistakes. Blocking your mind all the time will only cause me to worry and suspect things."

Nothing could possibly be worse than being a teenager with a telepathic father. It's not like he had to worry about me becoming a harlot overnight; I wasn't thinking about sex. It was the last thing on my mind, and it always had been. I knew, better even than father, that I was much too immature for that kind of thing. Even though I had no secrets to protect, my mind was suddenly a much more private place and I just didn't want to share my fluttering blissful thoughts with my father.

All I could do was nod as he glared at me, an eyebrow raised and his arms still firmly crossed. Mortified and flustered, my palms were practically dripping sweat and I just wanted to run up to my room and lock myself away until tomorrow. As if on cue, I felt my phone buzz against my thigh through my pocket and quickly reached in to grab it, my heart skipping every other beat with the promise of hearing Lysander's voice.

"He's already calling, isn't he?" Father laughed as I pulled my phone up to eyeshot and saw that it was indeed my knight-in-shining-armor, rescuing me from the awkward clutches of my father.

"Tell him I said hello...it's been a while since we've seen him!" He was teasing, and I rolled my eyes as I held the phone to my ear eagerly.

"Hi..." I cooed happily, my ears gasping for a deep breath of Lysander. I heard him breathe in my own voice before speaking.

"Hello beautiful...may I please speak to your father for a moment?" My smile twisted into a crinkled look of confusion as I pressed the phone closer.

"M-my father?" I confirmed, hoping that I had heard him wrong. Father perked up from the mention of his name, tilting his head and raising a suspicious eyebrow.

"Yes, it'll only take a second...and then I'd like to spend the rest of the night talking to you."

"O-okay..." I touched my finger to the speaker phone option on my phone to make sure that I wouldn't miss a second of what business Lysander had with my father. "Here he is..."

Father took the phone as I handed it to him and held it up to his ear, unaware that it was on speaker. "Hello, Lysander?"

"Good evening, Mr. Broderick." Lysander's amplified voice shot through my father's eardrums and he pulled the phone away, looking at it perplexingly before realizing that I had purposely switched it to speaker.

"What can I do for you?" He asked, now holding the phone out.

"Well, I actually had something I wanted to ask you..."

"Ask away." Father furrowed his brow, seemingly just as baffled as I was.

"I wanted to ask your permission to take your daughter out tomorrow, sir." I could have exploded as a punch of passion hit me directly in the heart. Lysander had recognized that I hadn't had the courage to ask my father about tomorrow...so he was _asking him for me._ I didn't think it was possible for me to love him even more, but I found that I'd probably be falling in love with him over and over again from now on.

"How old-fashioned of you, Lysander. Define 'out'." My father looked intrigued, and I watched on knowing that Lysander had a way with words that could influence anyone to agree with him; I could only hope that anyone included my stubborn father.

"Well you see, sir, Luna has yet to experience all that the town has to offer, so I figured it might be nice to show her around. There is a recreational center in the middle of town with a beautiful hiking trail that I thought we could walk, and my brother owns a clothing boutique that I think Luna will absolutely adore, just to name a few things on the list."

"Hm..that all sounds awfully nice..." Father was churning everything around in his mind and the suspense was enough to send me over the edge. I balled my hands into little fists to try to subdue the sweating, even if only a little.

"You can trust me, Mr. Broderick. I intend to treat your daughter with only the utmost respect, as she deserves."

"Heck, why not? I'll give you a fair chance to prove me wrong about high school boys." He laughed, scratching his scalp almost in disbelief about his own easy decision. I felt like jumping up and down and screaming like I had won the lottery...was this really happening? My father was just going to let me go, no questions asked?

"I'm not like most high school boys, Mr. Broderick." Lysander laughed, his ironic words causing both father and I to giggle as well.

"Touche', Mr. Larkin. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then." Father nodded his head, almost in approval of Lysander, and I couldn't have been happier about it.

"Looking forward to it, sir. Thank you." On that note, father handed the phone back to me and winked, giving me a smirk to which I reciprocated with a quick hug, holding the phone away for a moment. _'Thank you, father.'_

"Hold on just a second, Lysander." I told him quickly, turning on my heel and climbing the stairs to my room. I shut the door and threw myself on my bed, my entire body heavy from the awkward discomposure of new love.

"Okay, I'm back." I giggled, awaiting his voice to grace my hungry ears.

"I miss you already...is that strange?" He jumped right to ask me. I couldn't help but let tons of nervous giggles escape past my lips as I flipped over onto my back and tried to press the phone even closer to my ear, subconsciously hoping that it would bring me closer to feeling the warmth of Lysander all around me like I had in the field.

"Not at all. I was hoping I wasn't the only one."

Lysander sighed, letting out a few chuckles before clearing his throat. "Are you excited for tomorrow?"

"You have no idea. I can't wait to spend more time with you...we have a lot of catching up to do. By the way, thank you for what you did just now- asking my father's permission for tomorrow. You keep finding new ways to steal my heart. You're amazing." My heart spewed the words it held so dear and I found myself talking faster than I normally ever did all for the sake of finishing my sentences so that I could hear his voice once more.

"It was no problem, Luna. It was only the polite thing to do, anyway- and I can say all the same about you. Just the way you say the simplest words makes my heart race; I don't know how you do it. I never want this feeling to go away. I'm still in shock about everything that happened today, honestly. It hasn't really set in yet. I keep worrying that tomorrow you might wake up and realize that you don't actually want to be with me."

How was it possible for someone to be _so_ adorable? He made my heart do pirouettes, twirling around and around like a tornado that was impossible to stop.

"That won't happen. Tonight I'll fall asleep with you in my thoughts and I'll probably dream about you all night...there hasn't been a night since I met you that I haven't dreamt of your eyes, honestly. Every time I close my eyes I see them, and when I wake up in the morning, you'll be the first thing on my mind until I see you again. I'm sorry if I sound a bit neurotic, but it's the truth." I was discovering that it would always be the truth with Lysander. Everything we did and said and felt was real, honest, _beautiful_ and perfect in every single fleck of its being.

"You don't sound neurotic, you sound like me. I'll proudly admit that I'm obsessed with you." He snickered.

I was a mess and I'd probably be extremely humiliated if anyone could've seen me, giggling and running my fingers through my hair, rattled and breathless like a...well, like a fool in love. He left me speechless and I just sat there, repositioning myself over and over and laughing, sighing, breathing- trying to snap myself out of the dizzy spell he'd cast over me.

"Oh Lysander, what am I going to do with you?" I finally managed to stammer.

"I don't know, Luna." He snickered. "But when you figure it out, don't hesitate to just do it." My cheeks were ablaze, glaring on like a wildfire as he shamelessly flirted and countered everything I had to say with his irresistibly witty charm.

"I'll keep that in mind..." We were _still_ playing games, and I was barefacedly loving every second of it.

"You'd _better._ Oh, before I forget...you don't happen to know where I might have left my notebook, do you? It's not in my bag...I'm so embarrassingly forgetful..."

"On the bench in the garden! You put it down when I thrashed through the bushes like a complete idiot!" I laughed, my face now impossibly red and burning as I recalled the moment.

"Ah, yes, I remember now! I hope it doesn't rain this weekend...And just for the record, you aren't an idiot! You just need some fine tuning in the art of espionage, that's all. Unlike me though, you seem to have a good eye for detail. I'd forget my own head if it weren't attached properly. But strangely, I can remember every word you've ever said to me."

I was in a fit of giggles again. "What's the first word I ever said to you?" I asked him, playfully.

"You said, 'It's alright.' after I apologized for storming off on your first day. You have no idea how nervous you made me at first. Not only did I have to deal with the fact that I couldn't read your mind, I was also lovesick from the moment I saw you." Lysander recalled, feeding the ravenous butterflies in the pit of my stomach with every word.

"Was that song you wrote...?" I started to ask, trying to think of each and every question I had ever wanted to ask him.

"-About you? Of course. Was it that obvious?"

"I only just put it together now. It really freaked me out at first, because it was like I was reading my exact thoughts about you...and I guess in a way I was. Gosh, I still can't believe everything that's happened. Just yesterday we were sitting in the infirmary with matching headaches, unaware that they were from the same thing...and now, you know everything about me- I know everything about you, and it's amazing. I'm just amazed." The state of shock I was in surprisingly didn't paralyze me, but I felt as though if I kept letting the reality sink in more and more, it might just put me into a comatose. Every word, every thought was new and exciting and thrilling to me, and I found myself only wanting more.

The phone stayed glued to my ear for the rest of the night. We forgot about dinner, father and Leigh, showering, homework- about the world like we tended to do, and just talked. Lysander took a tiny break to call out a short, sweet hello to Leigh as he walked through the door and father knocked once to check and see if I was hungry but I couldn't eat anything- the lovestruck butterflies had already filled me up, making it impossible to stomach anything at all. Plus, doing something else would have only taken away from my time talking to Lysander. Lysander agreed to be at my house in the morning at ten o'clock sharp, as to give ourselves time to get a little rest before the big day even though I could have easily agreed to wake up earlier than that. When my eyelids grew heavy and crept towards my cheekbones in tiny, indocile flutters, I tried my very best to ignore them. Our voices grew weaker and slower and I finally drifted off as we tried to decide who should hang up first, countless 'goodnights' and 'I loves you's' in between.

* * *

Light cascaded through the blinds, touching everything in the room with a hint of warmth and as soon as the sun rose completely over the hemisphere I could feel it all around me as its rays wrapped themselves around my ankles, attempting to tear me from my bed. My limbs were intricately intertwined through the blankets and pillows and one of my legs protruded out past the comforter that I pulled over the rest of me. My arms had twisted themselves around a long, soft body pillow, and I was hugging onto it, my grip never once faltering even as I stretched my entire body out like an accordion.

Birds were chirping, their sounds swirling together and bouncing around in my head. The seagull's shrill calls and the sweet, shy song of the sandpiper echoed through my memory like my own, personal nostalgic alarm clock. Images of Lysander flashed behind my eyelids, inviting me to open my eyes and face the day and I was quick to do just that. Sitting straight up and rubbing the sleep away from the cracks of my eyes I reached for my phone to check the time.

7:30. There were still two and a half hours until Lysander would be here and I felt as though I already couldn't wait one more minute to see him. To feed my hunger, I decided to leave him a text message to wake up to, if he hadn't already.

_'Good morning :) I still love you today, if not more than I did yesterday. Told you so. ;)' _

Placing my phone down on the nightstand, I rolled my eager body out of bed and stretched my arms over my head, breathing in a mighty yawn as I took in the fresh, crisp morning air around me. There was much planning to do and I knew that the first place I needed to visit was my closet.

A pale, blush-colored dress popped out further from the rest of my clothes. It seemed to whisper to me, and I plucked the hanger off the rack and held it up, examining every detail. Rosy, pale pink, with short sleeves and a thin, matching belt that separated the bodice and the skirt, the dress buttoned all the way up and I fondly remembered that it hugged every curve on my body to a tee. It would be perfect if only the weather would agree and I rushed to the window and pushed it open to get a feel for the temperature. Warm, crisp air rolled in, a slight, cool breeze riding along as if Mother Nature herself agreed with my choice wholeheartedly. I laid the dress down on my bed and went to the closet once again for my beige, light-weight cardigan and short, flat Victorian-styled booties that I had made months before. With a black shoe and white boot fabric protruding only halfway up my calf and the cloth tucked in with one black button on each side, they were comfortable and gave the outfit a little Victorian edge that I hoped might impress Lysander.

I laid the entire outfit out on my bed and grabbed for my bathrobe, trotting across the hallway to the bathroom and throwing myself under the cold still-adjusting water of the shower in a rush to get to my phone again. Time was on my side but patience was not, and I sloshed citrus-scented shampoo and conditioner through my long hair, washed, and shaved in record time, nicking my legs in the process. I didn't even realize the blood trickling down from my knee to my heel until I had stepped out of the shower and went to towel-dry my legs, which needed three band aids and stung all over every step I took.

_'I hope you had a pleasant night; I certainly did. :) I don't think I've slept so soundly my whole life knowing I'd have you to look forward to in the morning. I love you.' _

The muscles in my cheeks were raw from stretching a smile so wide as I read his words over and over. _'I love you. Just two hours left!' _My fingers touched each letter as if they were in a race against time, trying to defuse a ticking time-bomb.

Tying by bathrobe right and letting my hair waterfall out from the tight wrap of the towel, quickly drying the drippy ends, I slipped on some bootie house shoes and jogged down the stairs to kill time by eating something for breakfast, even though I wasn't the least bit hungry. Father sat at the kitchen table in his usual morning position- newspaper spread across the table and a mug of steaming coffee in hand. He pushed his glasses to the bridge of his nose and peeked up to me from over the lenses with a smirk.

"Good morning Lulu. Did Romeo let you get any sleep?" Father snickered before taking a quaint sip from his cup.

I rolled my eyes and giggled, tossing my head as I floated across the linoleum to the cabinets. "I fell asleep quite early, actually."

"Well, good. Teenagers need at least nine hours of sleep, you know."

Muffled snickers escaped my lips as I stood on my tiptoes to try to reach for the strawberry Poptarts that father must have aimlessly put up on the highest shelf. Using the tip of my index finger I managed to knock them from the shelf to the counter.

"I have a conference call in just a minute...what time is Lysander picking you up?" Father asked from the kitchen table as I unwrapped the sticky silver foil package.

"Ten o'clock." I chirped before pulling the pastry to my lips and biting off a piece of the crumbly crust, even though I wasn't very hungry at all. My stomach was whirling with excitement, but I knew I'd end up starving later if I didn't eat now, so I managed to stuff the entire thing down without a second thought.

"I'm going to head on into my office now...I'm not sure how long I'll be but if I'm not finished in time to see you off..." Father started after checking his wristwatch and placing his coffee cup in the sink, holding him arms out to me for a hug. I leaned against him and let him wrap his arms around me and kiss the top of my head.

_'Be safe and behave! Text me throughout the day to let me know you're having a good time and don't be home too late!' _He thought as he embraced me.

_'I will, father. I love you.'_ I looked up, shrinking away and giving him a confident smirk. His lips curled into a trusting smile and he squeezed my shoulder.

_'I love you too, Lulu.'_

After washing my hands and rearranging the dishes in the dishwasher to make room for father's empty coffee cup, I was darting up the stairs like a rocket to check my phone and begin the process of readying myself presentable for Lysander. Sure enough, I had a text message from Lysander awaiting me, _'I'm counting down the seconds, beautiful. My lips miss yours.'_

With a giddy, almost painfully large smile, I was all at once sending him an equally nauseating-cute reply and throwing off my bathrobe onto the ground. Placing my phone on the bed, I lathered myself in cocoa butter lotion to prevent my sensitive skin from chapping in the wind and then wiggled myself into my clothes as they clung to the still-sticky skin that I couldn't have let dry for another second. I was frantic, my logic that if I rushed in getting ready the time might go faster, but even when I finished dressing I found it to be only 8:30- left with an excruciating hour and a half to wait. I tried to waste more time by blow drying each strand of my hair once at a time, applying a thin layer of foundation to even my skin tone and a small amount of mascara diligently to every single lash one by one, but even after I was completely and utterly ready to go, it was only 9:00.

I finally broke down, texting Lysander of my impatience. _'I'm not even going to lie, I'm sitting here completely ready contemplating switching all of the clocks in the world to ten.' _

He was quick to respond, much to my delight as I couldn't bear to wait for anything else much longer. _'I've been dressed and ready since eight. I'm on my way.' _

My heart leapt to the moon and back and I sprung from the bed after texting him of my excitement. Grabbing my knapsack from the dresser I swiftly packed it full of random things- floss, chap-stick, a calculator, a beige knit beanie hat, a small travel-sized notebook, and my cellphone, and spritzing myself with a few squirts of body spray, I threw that into the bag and tramped down the stairs to sit by the window like a cat and watch cars until his pulled in to the driveway.

After a few minutes of car-watching, I was restless and started crossing and re-crossing my legs. When the tingles and itchiness trickled down to my feet I got up and did a lap around the kitchen and the living room to try to quell my fidgety, skipping heartbeat. Coming back around to my window, I squinted my eyes to focus in on newly detected movement from outside. I pressed myself against the glass, fogging it with my breaths as I watched, wide-eyed and dumbstruck. There he was, in all his glorious beauty, strolling hurriedly past my mailbox at the end of the driveway. I admired him from afar for only a moment, watching as his long legs took even strides and observing his luxe outfit- a light beige long-sleeved collared shirt under a chestnut button-up vest with a short light blue ascot tied neatly around his collar. His willowy legs seemed extended under tight straight-legged brown slacks, and over them wore signature brown leather boots with light-blue hardware that matched his ascot.

My feet slid across the slick hardwood as I raced for the door, pulling it open and slowing down only to throw myself through the frame as elegantly as possible. My hands trembled as I closed the door behind me and turned to face a smiling Lysander, who kept his fevered pace even, though it was obvious that he was just as flushed as I was.

I skipped down the front steps and straight for his waiting arms, burying my head into the crook of his neck and breathing him in all at once. His scent was just as intoxicating and I was instantly high off him from the moment I respired. As I stretched my neck to look up to his waiting lips, his silver wind-swept hair fell around his face, a few strands running wild across his forehead as he smiled down at me and brought a soft, warm hand to my cheek. _'Hello, beautiful girl.' _

All at once his lips were on mine and our thoughts were tangled up in a mess of emotions. I snaked my fingers through his hair and tugged at it gently, pulling him closer, my smile mirthfully dancing across his as if I had ached for his kiss for years.

_'I've missed you.' _I thought, letting a giggle slip onto his lips. He deepened the kiss only to pull away and take my hands in his, his eyes burning a hole right through me as they smiled along with the rest of his face.

Lysander's longing thoughts filled my head as I looked behind him, expecting to see his car parked along the curb, but as my eyes scanned over the fire hydrant and a stray black cat that crept through the side yard, I didn't see a car at all.

"Where'd you park?" I asked him abruptly, tilting my head with a wondering gaze.

"Oh, I walked here. I uh, actually had a little proposition for you..." He expressed, looping his fingers through mine and leading me towards the street as I smiled up at him, leaning in to hear more. My thoughts were still wrapped around his and I tried to find a hint before he explained, but he was good at hiding little details and controlling his thoughts, whereas I was an open book, cover to cover.

"We can either walk to my house now, get my car, and go into town like we originally planned or...we can walk together to the school and explore that field back in the woods...i-if you'd want. It was just an idea. I just can't stop thinking about that place. It felt like..."

"Like it was ours." I finished for him, fondly recalling the incredible moments we shared in the place that only we knew.

"Yeah, exactly. It was like another world, just for us. I may sound selfish in saying this, but I almost don't want to share you with the rest of the world. At least not today. I want you all to myself." He was red hot, his cheeks dusted with a fiery crimson that shook me from head to toe, and as we walked down the sidewalk and away from the world, I knew exactly where my feet were taking me.

_'Let's go then.' _I smiled, tightening my grip on his hand.

_'To the woods?' _He looked down at me, his eyes big and glossy with wonder.

_'To our world.'_

* * *

_A/N: I'm SO glad you're all enjoying the Lysuna fluff! More to come soon! Thanks a million times for all of your amazing reviews! _

_XOXO_


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen: Meant to Be**

**A/N: Couldn't help but to make this chapter super long :P Hope you guys don't mind! Features just a few lyrics from Can't Help Falling In Love by Elvis. :) Enjoy!**

* * *

A new wind blew through past the street signs and stop lights that lined the back roads of Amoris. It wasn't cold, but held the promise of winter between the layers of pressurized air. The subtle change in temperature was almost like a symbol of my new life as it played out before my very eyes and I drew a deep breath; savoring this change was thirst quenching and I was invigorated.

"What did you have for breakfast this morning?" Lysander blurted, keeping our comfortable small-talk going as his eyes fell down to my height.

Giggling at his random question, I drank up his inquisitive expression. "Strawberry Poptarts, what about you?."

"You're serious?" He chuckled, looking down with a twisted smirk.

I skewed my mouth to the side and shrugged, giddy laughter still rolling off my tongue effortlessly. "Why would I make up what I had for breakfast?" I teased.

Lysander kept on laughing and planted a quick, sweet kiss on my lips. _'That's what I had too!' _I smiled on his lips and kissed him right back. _'They're my favorite.'_

_'Me too! I eat them almost every day!'_

Connecting the dots to discover all of these endearing similarities between us was just another on the long list of things I loved about being in love.

Lysander took great care in making sure that there weren't any cars approaching before we glided safely across the street and pushed on towards the school. I was impressed by my attention span; usually not much more than that of a goldfish, I was able to take in every single detail of his thoughts as they projected themselves to me through our secret conversations about nothing in particular.I was so enthralled by Lysander's charm that I didn't even notice as we came upon the same rosebush that I had admired just the other day until I saw Lysander's thoughts about it. He crossed in front of me and bent down to pluck the biggest, most complete rose of them all, diligently handing it to me with a jaunty smile.

My heart was a bird, chirping, flapping and ruffling its feathers in a desperate attempt to calm itself from the shock of how incredible he made me feel. I buried my nose in the sweet flower and respired- its scent was beautiful but nothing compared to that of Lysander. He watched me with a warm, summer-sky smile and I looked up to him with a grin to match, stopping to stand on my tiptoes and deliver a kiss to his waiting lips- words just weren't enough.

_'I want to give you everything beautiful in this world. I want to wrap it all up for you- the oceans and seagulls, flowers, moonlight and sunsets...if I could, I would.' _He thought, his eye contact kissing my own.

_'You've already given me the most beautiful thing in the world, Lysander. Anything else would never compare to the way you make me feel.' _I liked to believe that any romantic liner that he could deliver, I could counter. It was just our game and I loved the way that we played.

He bit onto his lip and I watched the hair stand up on his wrist as he shook his head.

_'I'm so in love with you.'_ Is all his poetical mind could muster, and the fact that I could reduce his paragraphs to sentences was inspiring.

As we walked on, I admiring my rose and stroking the soft petals with the tip of my finger, I noticed Lysander studying one of his own fingers closely. Zeroing in on the tip of the pointer that he held close to eyeshot I noticed that it was bleeding and quickly put a hand on his forearm, my face falling completely. _'You're bleeding!'_

_'The thorn from the rosebush must've nabbed me. Don't fret, angel. I'm sure I'll recover.' _He thought with a reassuring smirk; but I wasn't taking it. If he was anything like me, which he was, he was probably hoping I'd not waste another minute worrying. That wasn't going to happen though. I stopped in front of him and took his hand in mine, bringing the pricked finger to my lips and kissing it gently before reaching for his pants pocket where a handkerchief protruded out just slightly. Lysander's entire body tensed up as my hand brushed against his thigh, his mind racing.

I quickly plucked the handkerchief out and held it up. _'Relax...I'm not that forward.' _I joked. He breathed out a sigh of relief and snickered to himself, keeping his jumbled thoughts just as unorganized as before.

He held his finger up for me even though I could tell he didn't want to. _'I'll be okay Luna...' _He assured me over and over as I dabbed until the bleeding stopped.

"There." I announced once I was sure that the blood flow had ceased. Lysander shook his head, laughing to himself and I looked to him for an explanation. "No one's ever cared that much about me before..." He giggled.

"Well, get used to it!" I chirped happily, kissing him on the cheek.

My grasp on his hand never once faltered and the walk to school was a short one. We soon found ourselves treading the flat asphalt of the parking lot and past the school, through the garden and across the field to the woods where memories of my childish outburst and Lysander's confusion from yesterday came rushing back to me. Lysander looked around, fondly remembering my game of Hide and Think.

_'Maybe you can teach me your game when we get to the field!' _Lysander suggested sweetly. My nose crinkled as I giggled and nodded my head. _'-But don't think that just because I love you I'll let you win. I'll have you know I'm actually quite competitive.' _He gave me a snarky grin and my heart was on fire. He was too perfect to be true and I feared that he'd just disappear any second. I never wanted to let go of his hand.

I picked my foot up to cross over the last few fallen tree limbs and briars that lay in the way and Lysander held tight to me with one hand, his other holding back obscure branches to clear the path for us through the portal and into our world. Stepping on the lush, undried grass, the field may have looked even more amazing than it had before, especially at this time in the early morning. We peered wide-eyed at the scene around us as we did before and I was taking notes in my head again. The dew sprinkled across the flat sparkled like diamonds and the morning sun washed over the land in streaks of light, glazing everything in a comfortable warmth. My favorite, most idolized piece of the perfect portrait was still my beautiful Lysander who stood beside me, his thoughts just as poetic and in awe as mine.

Breathing in everything, my stomach was in knots again. Was this really my life? In two months I had gone from being a lonely, introverted, stir crazy freak-of-nature to finding my place in this world, and it was here; not only in Amoris, but in this field with Lysander by my side.

_'I feel the same way.'_ Lysander interrupted my thoughts in that way that I loved. It showed that he _always_ listened._ 'I've been so out of place my whole life. I never truly felt like I belonged until I met you. You have no idea what you've done to my entire world.' _

_'I do though. You've not only changed my world; you've brought me to an entirely different planet.' _As I gave him the thoughts in my mind he squeezed my hand and brought me forward into the field. The further we walked, the more the rest of the world melted away into something that didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered when I was with Lysander.

It was a curse; always having clammy, sweating palms when I got nervous or excited, but with my fingers intertwined delicately between Lysander's, there was nothing to be ashamed of because my hands stayed completely dry. I wasn't ever nervous- it was the most natural, comfortable feeling in the world - like my hands had also found the place they truly belonged.

We walked side by side across the field, our shoulders touching and our smiles never-fading. It was like walking through a dream, only much better because it was all too real.

"You're a dream come true, Luna." Lysander cooed as he placed a tender kiss on my forehead, stealing words from my head. Lysander's mind was full of beautiful, awe-inspiring thoughts that flowed like poetry, and I found myself falling deeper under his spell with every word.

"Why are you so perfect?" I giggled, burying my head into his shoulder as we walked and grasping his hand with both of mine now to assure my hold on him.

Lysander snickered to himself and tossed his head, his hair moving along like the strokes of a paintbrush as he turned to look down at me.

"I can't imagine why you'd think I'm the perfect one, silly girl." Were his words, while his mind displayed all of the things he thought made me flawless. I certainly wasn't flawless, but he sure did make me feel like I was.

_'You think anyone knows about this place?'_ Lysander shook his head as he squeezed my hand.

_'No, I don't. I've lived here years and have never seen or heard of this place. No one comes through these woods- ever. It's ours.' _He smiled, letting just a flash of his bright teeth peek out from behind his lips.

_'Ours...' _It was the best feeling in the world to know that no one knew where we were. We could do whatever we wanted here, and no one would judge us for it. It truly was our own little world away from everything else.

As we strolled through our feet glided towards the bustling creek that lay at the edge of the forest, wordlessly deciding to explore it first. I let go of Lysander's hand only to rush to the bed of the creek and pick up a pebble. I tossed it around in my hand, its texture smooth from possible centuries of being carried along by the soft, cradling current of the stream, before flipping it into the water to hear the splash and watch it sink. Lysander seemed to enjoy my childish mirth and he watched on as I kept tossing pebbles in the water.

I switched from looking to him and the water in wonder, trying to catch a glimpse of life to no avail. "I wonder what kind of creatures live in here!" I spoke aloud. Lysander joined me at the edge, taking great care not to wet his boots at all and peering over into the clear water.

"Maybe they're all just hiding out from the cold." He suggested with a smirk. Either way, I felt now more than ever that we were completely and utterly alone here, and it was thrilling.

We stood and watched the creek's steady current roll by and I bent down to skim the surface of the water with the tips of my fingers, letting the bitter, freezing nip of the icy water rush over my skin for just a moment before pulling my hand out and playfully flicking the water at Lysander, who put his hands up in defense, snickering wildly with shock.

"You're in trouble now!" He warned me through a toothy smile, grabbing for me with outstretched arms.

I dodged his attempt to catch me and ran into the field, laughing into the sun and pushing on with uneven strides. Lysander's thoughts were loud and gaining on me and as I twisted my head to look back, one of my shoes slipped completely off my foot and I tripped, landing on my knees and catching myself with locked arms and steady hands pressed firmly on the grass. Lysander broke his pace and in an instant was beside me on bended knee, his hands out and the smile on his face swept away.

"Oh, Luna! Are you alright?" He was frantic, and looked utterly confused as I rolled over onto my backside and held my sides, delirious laughter rolling out from the bottom of my stomach like it was the funniest thing that had ever happened to me. Maybe it was downright embarrassment mixed in with the butterflies of new love and the fun of the game, but either way, I couldn't stop and soon Lysander's look of despair was melting away into a cautious smile.

"I'm...I'm fine!" I managed in between giggles.

"I figured as much!" Lysander laughed along with me, putting his hands on my knees to propel himself closer to plant a kiss on my forehead. "-But you had me worried sick for a moment there!"

He intertwined his legs with mine and held on to my hands as if he was trying to protect me from a world of dangers and I felt as though I may never get used to the feeling of falling in love over and over again. He recoiled for only a moment, grabbing my other shoe and slipping it on my foot for me. I was Cinderella in the presence of her Prince Charming. The butterflies in my stomach were eating straight through me and I wouldn't have been surprised if they came fluttering right out, as real and tangible as Lysander himself.

"So I'm assuming your father knows about us...how does he feel?" Lysander asked me as we laid down beside each other to rest our backs on the soft grass and watch the clouds roll by. I couldn't help but to chuckle, sending anxious nerves through Lysander's entire body. "He doesn't like me, does he?"

"No, no he does! If he didn't like you, you'd know; _believe me._ He's weird about things...but he doesn't mind us being together. He just has expectations." I explained to him, resting my head on his chest as he ran a lazy hand through my hair.

"What kind of expectations?" He asked, looking down at me with wondering eyes.

I turned red and buried my face in his chest, giggling. "Expectations that I definitely didn't feel comfortable with him elaborating on. He often stereotypes young people judging by the majority of thoughts he hears..."

"I see..." Lysander was churning the subtle explanation in his mind. "Well, I certainly hope he doesn't mind me kissing you...because if he does, we're going to have some problems." He snickered playfully, delivering a disobediently deep kiss to my hungry lips.

I nipped at his lower lip, begging for more and he positioned himself over me now as I laid my head down on the napped grass. He cupped my face with his hand and ran his tongue across my lower lip, prompting me to open my mouth against his- a daring and bold move on my part. I quickly became infatuated with the feeling of him gently tugging at my bottom lip with his teeth and any time I felt his tongue against mine it only made me want _more_ of him. For my own good I knew I'd have to eventually pull away but something stronger than gravity kept pulling me back and we kissed each other frantically for minutes that seemed like hours. When we finally decided to give our tired lips a break, I was breathless and almost fatigued.

I rested my head on Lysander's chest again and he held me close, wrapping me up and kissing my forehead over and over._ 'My father would definitely mind you kissing me like that.' _

Lysander's lips curled into a devious grin and he chuckled to himself._ 'Then we are going to have some disagreements, aren't we?' _

_'It doesn't matter what father thinks. I'm going to do exactly what I want with you.' _I thought pompously. Lysander shifted his eyes down to me, that same snarky smirk still tugging at his cheeks.

_'Oh? And what is it exactly that you're going to do to me? I'm a bit intrigued.' _His eyes were glowing with a hint of mischief that drove me wild and I shook my head, trying my best not to turn red.

_'You don't want to know...'_ I teased, I myself not even aware of what it was that I wanted 'to do' to Lysander.

_'Oh but I do.'_ We were playing games again, and they made me feel like I could explode.

I wasn't exactly sure how to counteract his shameless flirting and instead just gave him a half-mooned smirk and shook my head._ 'You'll just have to wait and see.' _

Lysander chuckled a defeated sigh, his beautiful thoughts fuzzy and frantic as we rested out temples together and looked into the clouds. I couldn't help but to study each of them, pointing my finger out when I spotted one that really caught my eye.

"Look there. It's a goat!" I blurted, squinting one eye to line my finger up with the cloud that resembled the farm animal. I could almost hear Lysander smile as he tried to follow my finger with his own.

"Where? I can't see it...I see a turtle, though." He laughed, pointing to the same cloud that definitely looked like a goat.

"No, that's the goat!" It seemed as though I hadn't stopped giggling like a little girl since we'd been together and my voice was starting to grow weary from the constant use.

"It's a turtle! See the legs?"

"Those are horns!"

"But look...there's a big shell, see?"

"No, that's the body...see the little tail?"

We rolled around in the grass, laughing and playfully bickering about our presumed cloud-shapes for a while, and I eventually decided to drag my fingers across Lysander's body to try to find his ticklish spots. He wasn't sure what I was doing at first until my fingers found the sides of his hips and began to pinch and squeeze, causing him to curl up and sending him into a fit of adorable laughter. Once he collected his strength he overpowered me and almost immediately recognized my most sensitive spot, my stomach. Brushing his fingers across it frantically, I was reduced to tears as I thrashed about, frantically wailing in laughter while Lysander mercilessly tickled me until I could barely breathe at all. When he finally let me draw the sweet autumn air into my gasping lungs once more, we both collapsed onto the grass again in a heap of fleeting giggles and giddy love. He wrapped me up in his arms and I looked up at him, raising an eyebrow when a question popped into my head.

"So...did you tell Castiel and Brooke about us yet?" I asked him as we tangled ourselves together under the oak tree.

"No, not yet. Castiel's parents are in town- they travel the world working for Malta airlines and practically live in the sky and out of hotels and suitcases, so he tries to make every minute that he gets with them count. They met Brooke this summer and absolutely adore her; I can only assume that she's spending time with them as well. I'd rather not tell him the most important news of my life over phone or message anyway." He explained.

"That's understandable. I think we should just kind of stroll into school together, hand in hand, and see what they say." I suggested with an excited giggle at the mere thought of holding Lysander's hand in school on Monday for all to see.

"You know, that's not a bad idea. That's kind of the way Castiel and Brooke announced their relationship. I already knew that they'd end up together, but they never called or texted me or anything; it was a whole lot more satisfying to me to see them together the next day at school." Lysander expressed, smiling as he reminisced about the past.

"They'll surely be ecstatic. Have you been listening to their thoughts?" I laughed.

Lysander rolled his eyes. "Yes." He started, before cracking a smile. "They were right though...we are perfect together." He leaned in to touch his nose to mine before diving in for a peck on the lips and I grinned into the kiss, agreeing wholeheartedly.

"What does Leigh think?" I blurted after sharing a few sweet, sentimental moments in our minds together.

"I haven't even said anything to Leigh. He probably has an idea- since we were clearly on the phone together all night. I planned on telling him this morning but he went in to work early. I'll be working with him tomorrow at the shop so I'll probably tell him then."

"I can't wait to see the shop...maybe I can talk my father into letting me swing by to visit tomorrow." I suggested, seeing as spending a day away from Lysander at this point was unspeakable.

"Ah, I was hoping you'd suggest something like that- I don't want to be away from you for too long." Lysander cooed, kissing my forehead before glancing over to the trunk of the towering oak tree behind us. I felt an idea pop into his head and watched as looked to me with a smirk before coming to his feet and taking a few strides closer to the trunk of the tree, examining it.

_'What a lovely tree...'_ He thought in his head, digging in his pocket for something as I got up to join him. It really was a magnificent tree. Standing at least eighty feet tall, it's trunk jutted from the ground and its twisted limbs weaved and grew together to form a tapestry of life that stood tall and lively even with all of it's leaves dead and most scattered across the grass around it. Lysander reached out to touch the bark of the tree before pulling out a pocket knife from his vest pocket and flipping out the blade.

"Should I even ask why you have a knife on you?" I chuckled, watching him run his finger across the razor-edge blade to check its sharpness. Lysander smiled, looking up from the knife and let out a muffled snort.

"You never know when you'll need one." He told me, turning to the tree and beginning to dig the knife's pointed tip into the bark.

"What in the world are you doing?" I was curious as to why he was cutting and ripping through the bark to create some kind of symbol. I watched as the knife formed the letter 'L' into the bark of the tree before he turned to me.

"Close your eyes...it's a surprise!" He instructed me, reaching out to bring my dangling hands to my eyes. I covered them up, biting on to my lip in suspense and trying to weed through his many thoughts to find a hint as to what he might be carving into the tree. I listened to the scratching of the blade to the wood for a while longer until finally I felt Lysander's hands on top of mine, delicately peeling them down.

My face twisted into a frenetic smile as I peered upon Lysander's witty creation. Embedded into the trunk of the tree was our initials, L.L and L.B encircled in a perfect heart- just like in the movies. I took a step forward, my mouth agape, and touched the tip of my finger to the fresh, moist wounds in the tree that would surely heal over time, leaving scars that would remain forever. Tracing each letter, I glanced over to Lysander, who watched me intently, his eyes squinting as he presumably read my billowing, dizzy thoughts.

_'Just figured we 'ought to leave our mark here.'_ He expressed in his mind with a smirk.

I didn't care what anyone thought and I never would. I may have only known him less than a month, but it had felt like my heart always loved him even before I knew who he was. I was_ so _in love with everything that was Lysander, and nobody could take that feeling away from me. Being with him in our world was _bliss._ This was the perfect place for us; we didn't fit in back on earth. Here, we didn't have to conform or control ourselves. We didn't have to pretend or act, because everything around us was real and honest and everything from the clouds in the sky to the roots of the trees beneath the grass accepted us just the way we were.

We spent the sunlight running around, playing, exploring, kissing, and holding each other. We skipped rocks, counted the clouds, and watched the sun until it set over the horizon in a vast display of pinks, oranges and other colors much too beautiful to put a name to at all. When the sky rolled over into night and the stars one by one started to sneak out leading the moon along with them, we weren't even close to being finished yet. No matter how dark the world around us became, there would always be light just as long as we were together. Each star winked as if showing their personal approval of Lysander and I. The twinkling reflected off the water in the creek like crown jewels adorning a peasant and with the only light from the moon, the stars, and Lysander's eyes- everything was perfection.

The crickets sang to us a longing song of solace and zeal and Lysander turned to me, taking my hand in his and kissing the top of it before bowing his head, never breaking the electrifying eye contact. _'Dance with me?' _

I couldn't help but let my seemingly endless supply of giggles loose and with a tugging smile, I walked towards him as he wrapped his arm around my waist. _'But there isn't any music!' _I teased.

_'I'm sure I could fix that.' _He thought with a smirk, clearing his throat a bit as my heart dropped into the pit of my stomach. Was he really about to _sing _to me?

"_Wise men say only fools rush in...but I can't help falling in love with you..." _He started, his voice soft and smooth and nothing but pure ecstasy to my ears. An untamable smile spread across my face at his impeccable song choice and my cheeks were painted with a fiery blush as I wrapped my arms around his neck and we began to sway back and forth.

"_Shall I stay? Would it be a sin? If I can't help falling in love with you..." _His smile never faltered as he whispered the words in the most beautiful singing voice I'd ever heard.

He twirled me around, his eye contact only breaking for a moment and the passion in our eyes only growing with each word he sang. Dipping me down and placing a gentle kiss on my lips before cradling me back in his arms, I was almost reduced to tears as the emotion of the moment overpowered me completely and I found myself drowning in his eyes with no hope of ever coming back up for air.

"_Take my hand, take my whole life too- for I can't help falling in love with you..."_

I was crazy about him. In that moment I realized more than ever that I'd do anything for him; die for him, even. There wasn't a moment in my life that I could remember feeling happier and as the moonlight reflected in his eyes and he cooed the last words to the song into my ear, I couldn't think of a single thing in this world that could have torn me from him.

Lysander pressed his forehead against mine and held my body close to his, peering into my eyes under sweeping bangs. _'I'm in awe of you...these past two days have been the most amazing of my life. I feel like I've found myself within you...you've awoken a part of my soul that I didn't even know existed.' _He told me in his thoughts.

He had won this round. I could think of no words beautiful enough to describe any of my feelings. I was utterly speechless and words nor thoughts could ever begin to grasp and define what my heart was going through. A single tear pushed its way past my eye and I let it run down my cheek only to be caught by Lysander's waiting thumb. He knew why I was crying and when I looked up to meet his eyes I watched them glaze over. From the glossy redness came two tears that rolled past his cheekbones. I used the sleeves of my cardigan to wipe them and he sniffed, taking his own hand to wipe his presumably itchy eyes. More tears lined up at the corners of my eyes, taking turns sliding out before I was crying in his arms, and he was crying on my shoulder. We sat in the grass and he rocked me in his arms, silently sniffling as we cried together. Our thoughts showed that we didn't even know exactly _why_ we were crying; overwhelming, passionate feelings raged from within our ribcages. We were both so happy to have found each other and we laid, wrapped in each other, the world silent but our thoughts loud and intertwined as we tried to make sense of all of the beauty and wonder in our new lives together. I could've stayed in his arms forever and he would've let me.

Wiping my diminishing tears, Lysander and I looked up at the stars. We knew that it was getting late, and the fact that our night together had to end was like a knife to the heart. He read my thoughts and reached in his pocket, pulling out a pocket watch on a long, gold chain and holding it up to the light of the moon.

_'Eight thirty...' _He read in his mind. My stomach was in knots...I knew it was time to go, and Lysander scooped me up in his arms as he came to his feet, setting me down next to him and leaning down to kiss my lips before looking up to the stars longingly again.

_'I don't want to leave...' _I thought over and over in my mind. We took slow steps to where my knapsack laid, untouched the entire day in a heap by the entrance to the field.

_'With the end of one day comes the promise of another, my love.' _Lysander told me, even though I could see that he too never wanted this night to end. He leaned down, grabbing my bag and slinging it across his back despite my reaching hands. He then turned to kiss me once more before turning, offering his back to me. _'Want me to carry you?'_

I giggled past my disappointment. _'What do you mean?'_

Lysander bent down, holding his arms out behind his back. _'Hop on and let me carry you through the woods!' _He pressed again, and I laughed as I climbed on to his back. He looped his arms around my legs and hoisted me up, positioning and holding me tight along with my bag before setting off into the woods. I couldn't quite quell my laughter- I'd never been carried before, except maybe when I was a young child. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held on snuggly as we trudged through the woods, trying to keep our thoughts positive even though we were both dreading saying goodnight. Lysander was careful to take slow, steady steps through the dark forest and I helped in thinking our way through the woods and finally to the soccer field back at school where the moonlight lit our path once more. He let me down per my request and I grabbed his hand, leading him to the garden as I remembered something we had forgotten to do.

_'Your notebook! We almost forgot to grab it!'_ I expressed, tugging him towards the garden.

Lysander snickered and followed close behind. _'What would I do without you?'_

As the marble bench came into my view, I squinted when I saw that it looked completely bare. We came up to it and realized that his notebook definitely wasn't there. Looking all around the surrounding area, it became clear that it was no longer where he had left it.

_'Are you sure I left it here?' _Lysander questioned, scratching his neck as I got down on my knees and looked directly under the bench and then to each side again. Getting up and dusting my knees off I turned to him. "I'd bet my life on it. I know for a fact that you put it down and then never went back to the bench..." I spoke aloud, just as puzzled as he was.

Lysander sighed, and I could feel his anxiety welling up as he brushed his hands over his face. "I really hope someone didn't take it...I need to find it..." He was mumbling over and over again, and I knew exactly how grave the situation was. If any of my notebooks ever went missing, I'd be a wreck. They're simply irreplaceable. I went to him and grabbed his sweating hands in mine.

"Maybe it's in the lost in found...is there a night watchman at the school or anything?" I asked him, trying my best to subdue his worries. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Jade...Jade the gardener comes by on the weekends to pick up the garden and treat the soil...maybe he found it?" He nodded his head to himself.

"Is your name in it at all?"

"Yes...its on the inside of the cover. You really think it'll just be in the lost and found on Monday?" He asked me, vexation sweating through his pores. It broke my heart to see him so distraught.

"Absolutely. No one would just take it...besides, there isn't anyone who actually hangs around the school on weekends." I told him with a confident smile. His frown cracked into a smirk and he nodded his head. He knew that I understood his anxiety completely, and he took my hand.

"Remind me to check the lost and found first thing on Monday!" He laughed, poking fun at his forgetfulness.

"Don't worry, I will!" I promised, intertwining my fingers through his as we started down the street and towards my house.

As slow and sluggish as we walked, it seemed as though in the blink of an eye we were standing outside my house, staring into the windows with heavy hearts. I couldn't pry my hand from Lysander's and he apprehensively walked me to the door, taking both of my hands in his and turning to me, his mouth skewing to the side.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" I asked him, tilting my head and begging for any excuse to spend more time with him even though I knew father was probably beginning to get worried about me.

Lysander shrugged. "I'll be fine walking...It makes me feel better knowing you've been safely walked to the door anyway."

"What with all the suspicious characters around these parts..." I giggled to keep myself from getting upset. Lysander gave me a snarky smirk and winked at me as he shook his head.

"Precisely."

I glanced over at my door and then back to Lysander, who now wore a look of disappointment and drew a sigh. _'I had a beautiful day with you today...' _He thought, staring into my eyes and placing a tender kiss on my forehead.

_'Likewise.' _I bit onto my lip. _'The best of my life...and I have a feeling that every day I spend with you will always be the best day of my life.'_

Lysander leaned in to give me one last, lingering kiss goodnight under the moonlight, following it by another kiss on my forehead before taking a step back onto the walkway. _'I love you with all of my heart, Luna Broderick.' _

_'I love you more.' _I smirked, waving my hand as he walked backwards down my driveway. I watched him as I slowly opened my door, pulling myself through and blowing him a last kiss before shutting the door behind me and walking into the foyer of my house. My heart instantly ached for him when he was out of sight. I slowly turned around, only to see father standing at the edge of the foyer, his hands on his hips and his thoughts blocked. I turned mine off as well and flashed a toothy smile at him that was not reciprocated.

"Hello father!" I expressed walked towards him. He zeroed his eyes in on me and shook his head.

"Hello Luna...how was your day?" He asked me with a straight face. I instantly began to feel uncomfortable and scratched at my neck, shrugging my shoulders.

"It was great, I had a really nice time."

"That's good to hear. You know, I was under the impression that Amoris wasn't such a big town- but if you can spend almost twelve hours exploring it and keep so busy doing so that you can't even bother to answer any of my text messages or phone calls, then it must be a lot bigger than I thought it was..."

_Oh no..._

"I-i'm sorry father...I lost track of t-time." I tried to fumble, to which my father rolled his eyes and shook his head again.

"Clearly! Do you have any idea how worried I was? I was about five minutes from calling the police, Luna. What on earth were you thinking?" He took a few steps towards me while I took a step back.

"I guess I wasn't..."

"That's not the Luna I know; I'm extremely disappointed in you...you told me that you'd keep in touch with me today and you didn't. What's more; when I finished my conference call early just to make it out before ten to see you off and say hello to Lysander you were already gone..." The offenses against me just kept piling up, and my head was pounding with the overwhelming realization that I had completely messed up.

"I'm sorry..." I meekly muttered, unable to form many other words at all.

"As you should be. I understand you're new to this whole 'social life' thing, but twelve hours away from home without so much as a simple text message is unacceptable."

"I understand father...to be completely honest I left my phone in my bag for the day." I told him truthfully.

"-And clearly you and Lysander didn't take his car. Did you walk to town?" He was prying...he knew I couldn't lie, but I _had_ to try. He couldn't know about our world.

"I uh...no. We dropped the car off at his house so that we could walk home..." I told him my first white lie.

"So you were at his house?" Father's face turned red with rage.

"I-I didn't go inside or anything! We just parked and then walked..."

"And what did your day consist of?" Father kept the questions coming and I had to think fast.

"We um..we went to his brother's clothes shop and stayed there for a while helping with some work around the store..." I started. I had no idea what I was actually doing and was operating purely on human instinct. "And we got lunch...and took a walk."

"For almost twelve hours?" Father crossed his arms, looking straight into my eyes. I tried my best to maintain eye contact.

"Y-yes?" I mumbled, shrugging my shoulders and hugging my knapsack. "I'm sorry...we lost track of time."

Father huffed and tossed his eyes again. "I'm not so sure I believe your story, Luna. I know you're not a liar...but how am I suppose to believe you if you keep your mind on lockdown around me?"

"How am I suppose to have any privacy if I don't?" I muttered back, feeling just a bit rebellious and instantly regretting my choice of words. His eyes widened and he seemed taken aback.

"What do you need privacy for? If you're doing things that you don't want me to see..." He started, his face flipping through every shade of red.

"I'm not! I just think I deserve the right to my private thoughts like any other normal teenager. You obviously have secrets that you keep from me and I respect that..." I couldn't believe how rash I was being.

Father drew a loud sigh. "You're right, Luna...you're right. You deserve your privacy..." He rambled, nodding his head to himself. "This is new to me, okay?"

"It's new to me too, father."

He outstretched his arms and I walked to him, wrapping my arms around him for a hug. "I was worried, Luna. You're suddenly growing up before my very eyes. I'm not used to you always blocking your thoughts...I'll respect your privacy, but please try to be a little open with me. I worry about you more than you'll ever know." He whispered, hugging me tight. I felt like scum on the bottom of the ocean floor and my heart was in pieces over lying to him and making him worry so much...what was I thinking?

"I'm sorry father...I really am. I promise I won't block you all the time." I murmured softly into his shoulder.

As we pulled away, he held my shoulders in place and looked me in the eyes. "You're still not off the hook though, Luna. This was strike one. Next time you go out I fully expect you to text me throughout the day...understood?"

"Yes father, understood." I was desperate for his forgiveness.

His smile fell again and his eye contact was fierce and grave, causing my stomach to twist itself into a thousand knots as he looked straight through my soul. "Just _don't_ let me get to three strikes..."

* * *

**A/N: I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and happy holidays! I've missed you all so ****much-** **I've been working**** nonstop at my job; it's retail and the holiday season has been NUTS! D:**

**So, not even two days into their relationship and Luna already has 'one strike' with her father! So far, the track record isn't very good! Let's hope they can control themselves and behave from here on out...yeah right! ;) **

**Thank you all for your amazing and kind reviews, without you, my life just wouldn't be whole. It's cheesy, but totally true. Writing for you is one of the biggest parts of my life! :) I love you! XOXO**


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen: Love Bites**

* * *

My reckless actions certainly didn't go without punishment and I was 'grounded' for the entirety of Sunday- _much_ to both Lysander and I's dismay.

_'I should have thought to remind you about your phone today...Forgive me, sweet girl.' _I read Lysander's text message when I finally managed to get to my room; I had explained to him through a long, drawn-out message what happened with my father almost immediately after the confrontation. As much as I wanted so badly to call him and hear his voice, I assumed it would only anger father more to hear me chatting all night through the paper-thin walls with the same boy who had kept me out all day.

_'Don't apologize- it was my mistake. How could I have been so stupid? I've never done something like this before. You simply whisked me away to another world.' _I promptly typed back, fiending for him already as I placed the phone down on the nightstand. Slipping out of my clothes and into a short, satin nightgown I crawled under the covers and into bed, taking my cellphone with me and keeping the screen in eye shot as I waited for Lysander's next text message.

_'I'm sorry for whisking you away from your responsibilities, though. Well, partially sorry. I must admit that I was quite pleased to have you all to myself today. I don't even feel at home in my bed anymore. Home is where you are, now.'_ Lysander's ability to make me blush and melt with only a text message was mystifying. I buried my face in my pillow and turned over onto my stomach in anguish over not being able to see him until Monday.

_'I know exactly what you mean. I'm going to miss you so much tomorrow.' _My eyes were already growing weak and fluttery, tugging for my cheekbones in a desperate attempt to rest, but fighting to keep them up I rolled over again onto my back and propped myself up against the bed headboard, turning to grab my notebook. Flipping it open while holding a pen in my teeth, I fixed a blank page and began to write words, sweet nothings that made no sense at all to anyone but me. My phone buzzed in my lap almost instantly and I grabbed for it, drinking every word Lysander offered.

_'I'm surely going to be miserable until we're together again, my love. I'm hopelessly addicted to you. Dreading tomorrow already. Where's the rewind button?' _Cracking a smile at his ability to make me feel better about even the worst of things, I took to the keys once more.

_'Let me know when you find it...that, or fast-forward. Once I'm eighteen and we're graduated I won't ever have to be without you._

My future with Lysander was already in sight. I closed my eyes and flooded my head with visions of a better tomorrow; a tomorrow where I never had to leave his side and it couldn't possibly come faster. I dreamt the night away; vivid imaginations of Lysander's eyes, his kiss, his hands and his embrace; the most beautiful image of all was that of our future; so close I could taste and see it, but so far away that my heart ached for it.

I slept until the sun crept through the blinds and tapped at my eyelids; tossing and trying to fight its wake up call was bootless. The first thought in my head was Lysander and I immediately took my phone to text him good morning. Exchanging fond words back and forth was no substitute for being together, but we did what we could to stay close. Father cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast to get me in a better mood and I never acted ornery or bitter towards him; I knew that I'd messed up, and I felt as though my punishment was probably fair. I did the dishes, swept and mopped the kitchen floor, and vacuumed the living room all before noon while father hid away in his office with work; it seemed as though he never got a moment away from it anymore. My phone kept on buzzing routinely and Lysander and I talked throughout the day, cheering me up slightly, especially when we'd send each other pictures of ourselves making silly faces or blowing kisses; we were nauseatingly cute and I didn't even care.

Father finally emerged from his office at around 2pm and we watched TV for a while before deciding on milk and cookies for lunch. I had inherited my father's sweet tooth and having snacks in place of real food was kind of our thing.

"Oh shoot..." Father mumbled from the kitchen, the buzz of the refrigerator door probably muffling any other discouraging words.

"What's wrong?" I called to him from the couch, pulling the fleece throw blanket over my legs as a cold chill shook my body.

"I forgot to go grocery shopping yesterday...we don't have milk. Or anything else, for that matter!" Father expressed as he walked out from the kitchen and grabbed his jacket from the back of one of the dining room chairs.

"I'm going to run into town, want to tag along?" He asked as he slipped his jacket on.

For a split second, I associated going into town with seeing Lysander and my heart skipped a beat- but reality struck once I realized that I'd still be with father and he wouldn't be too happy to 'coincidentally' run into Lysander at the store if I texted him to meet me there. Still, my legs were restless and I needed to get my mind off of how bored I was sitting in the house doing nothing so I agreed, running off to my room to put some clothes on before leaving the house.

Some simple black skinny jeans, black leather boots, and two pairs of socks on each foot would surely keep my bottom-half warm in the thirty-degree weather. I hoped that a long-sleeved pink shirt under a black cardigan would suffice since I didn't own any winter coats, and topping my outfit off with a beige scarf and a black knitted beanie-hat with a bow, I was rushing down the stairs to get some fresh air.

When I came to the bottom I stood silently, watching father on the phone with someone, writing something down on a piece of paper. Hopefully he wasn't on the phone with work- if he was, I could be waiting a long time. Turning to dust any dirt from the third stair, I sat down and waited, watching as father took turns writing and pacing while talking on the phone. He then placed his pen down on the breakfast bar in the kitchen and walked towards me, handing me the note he had scribbled.

I looked up at him and then down at the note, confusingly reading what he wrote. **'Important phone call. Can I trust you to go to the store and pick up a few things?'** It read, followed by a short list of groceries.

Could he trust me? Absolutely not. I couldn't even trust myself to carry out the simple task. How was I suppose to go into town alone and unsupervised without at least trying to see Lysander; if only for just a moment? I took the list and kissed father on the cheek as he handed me the keys to the Jetta, rushing out the door towards freedom and Lysander. I figured it might be a good idea not to tell Lysander of my intentions; that way if it didn't work out he wouldn't be disappointed and if it did, I could surprise him.

Fortunately for me, the only clothing boutique in Amoris wasn't hard to find. Right in the center of town within a stone's throw of the grocery store and post office, I'd say it was the perfect location. The loud purple building was of modern, chic style with roundish, curved architecture and long, wide windows lining the entire perimeter. I instantly recognized Leigh's black Mustang parked at the side of the building and not seeing Lysander's car could be adopted into the idea that they rode together to save gas, naturally. I parked the Jetta as swiftly as I could right beside Leigh's car, a burst of adrenaline coursing through my veins as the realization of how rebellious I was acting set in. I didn't care, though; the only thing on my mind was getting to Lysander, even if only for a moment.

Leaving my bag and all of my things in the car, I threw myself out and onto the pavement and rushed through the harsh, constricting wind to the door. Grabbing onto the cold metal door handle and prying my way in while trying to hold my cardigan closed over my freezing body, the jingle of bells and a warm, relaxing blast of heat greeted me, instantly offsetting the bitter temperature outdoors. I looked up to spot Leigh leaning over the counter with a pencil and paper, carefully transferring information from receipts before he registered the sound of the doorbell and looked up.

"Luna!" He wore a watermelon smile and started towards me from behind the counter while I grinned warmly, looking beyond him in hopes that Lysander would soon emerge as well.

"Hello Leigh!" I chirped, rubbing the chills from my arms as I relished in the heat. Leigh outstretched his lanky arms and scooped me up suddenly the minute he came to me and although a bit confused, I offered him a friendly hug in return.

"Lys told me everything this morning; I'm so thrilled that my brother found such a perfectly sweet girl!" He expressed, still holding my shoulders. I couldn't stop my cheeks from blushing at the mere mention of his name, and bit my lip as I shook my head.

"Thanks, Leigh. Your brother is an amazing person, I'm really happy."

"He's happy too...thank you so much; I've honestly never seen him so alive and content in my life. You've definitely brought out the best in him." Leigh's words made my heart smile, and I thanked him over and over for his kind words, so glad that Leigh fully accepted and supported my being with his younger brother.

"You look great, by the way...your outfit, I mean. Where's your jacket, though? It's freezing outside!" Leigh blurted, admiring my simple outfit for a moment before placing his hands firmly on his hips.

"I don't have one...not at the moment, anyway. I'm hoping my father will get me one for Christmas." I started, looking around at the many jackets and clothes on display in the store front. "-Hopefully from here! Wow...you make all of this?"

"Most of it. Some I get ordered in, it depends. You really don't own a winter jacket?" Leigh pressed on.

I shook my head, shrugging my shoulders. "I'm from California...I never needed one."

"Hm...interesting." Leigh put a hand to his chin, his eyes floating around the ceiling. My legs began to grow restless and my heart was beating out of control. Where was Lysander? I desperately needed him.

"Silly me...I bet you came to see Lys, right? He's in the backroom taking inventory. It's the last door at the end of the hallway. I'd say you could try to sneak up and scare him, but it's impossible- believe me, I've tried. No one has ever successfully scared Lysander. We all call him the ninja." Leigh laughed, leading me to the counter and holding back a curtain that revealed a hallway at the back of the store. I cracked a smile when I knew that I might just be able to sneak up on Lysander like no one else could.

"Thanks Leigh; challenge accepted!" I acknowledged, slowly walking down the corridor to the last door. I made sure to block my thoughts completely so that Lysander wouldn't hear me coming- which is how I figured he's managed to gain the title of 'ninja'. You can't really startle a telepath; we can always hear you coming.

When I came to the door I barely pushed it open with my finger, creeping through to get a secret glimpse of my beautiful Lysander. His back was turned to me and it was clear that he couldn't hear me at all, especially because two white ear buds protruded from his ears, the low hum of music indicating that the volume was turned up significantly. I stopped and took a moment to read his _secret_ thoughts, resting my head on the door frame with a smile as his beautiful voice came through to my own flow.

_'All the beauty in all the world could never compare to the way the moonlight sparkles in her eyes. I'm so enchanted by every little thing she says and does. Every word replays over and over in my head...I could have never imagined love to feel this way. She's so pure, so innocent and beautiful- the most beautiful thing in this lost, miserable world. Luna is a telepath...and she loves me and I certainly love her; I'm not alone anymore. I'll never be alone again. My sweet Luna...' _

Drawing air into my tight lungs, I was smitten all over again. How could someone be thinking such beautiful things _about me? _I was nothing special...but to Lysander, I was everything, and that was _more_ than enough for me. I couldn't hold back anymore. Taking slow, tip-toed steps towards him, I stood behind him, just inches away from touching and slowly covered his eyes with my hands. Lysander's entire body jumped frantically, aghast and surprised by the sudden touch of someone he didn't hear approaching.

_'Guess who?'_ I unblocked my mind and in that very moment, his anxiety went from 100 to 0 as he whipped around with the biggest grin in the world, tearing the ear buds out of his ears.

"Luna! Y-you're here! How?" He sputtered, grabbing me and wrapping his arms around me all at once. I giggled and breathed him in, feeling rejuvenated and alive again as he pulled away only to stare into my eyes with a smile.

"I managed to sneak away...father had a business call and we needed milk and butter, but how could I go into town without stopping by to see you?"

Lysander pulled me, his grip on my waist strong and protective as he pressed his sweet lips against mine. _'Oh Luna; my sweet, beautiful girl. You simply have no idea how happy I am to see you.' _He pushed his excitement and fluster into my mind, just adding onto the turbulence of emotions I was feeling in the moment.

_'I think I do...I've missed you so much.' _Were we still kissing? I suddenly had no idea where I was or what was going on- all I knew was Lysander's thoughts. My eyes were pressed shut and as I trusted him to lead me while I was blindly kissing him, I felt him back me into the wall beside the shelves of boxes. He pinned my hips up against the wall with his and kissed me deeper; more intense than ever before. Holding me still with his hands on my wrists, I was following his lead and even though we had only just kissed each other the past two days in our lives we were suddenly professionals and seemed to know _exactly _what we were doing. Our instincts kicked into overdrive; I wanted to be as close to him as I possibly could.

_What was this feeling?_ With his tongue on mine and his body held against me I was awakened to a sudden sense of urgency; like what we were doing could only get better if we'd just shut our minds off and go with it. It was extremely dangerous and I loved every minute of it.

I dragged my fingers through Lysander's messy hair and as if on cue he was suddenly kicking the door closed and picking me up, my legs coiling themselves around his waist and my arms around his neck, pinning me against the shelves now. I heard something fall from the top shelf, presumably a box of clothes, but the loud crash didn't affect our pace; we didn't miss a beat. These kisses were _different_ than our regular ones. They were hard, fast, _passionate, hot_ kisses of overwhelming instinct and desire for each other. He ripped his mouth away from mine only to trail his lips in between exasperated breaths from my cheeks to my neck and collar bone and from the moment they touched my sensitive skin below my chin I couldn't hold back as a gasp slipped out from the back of my throat; I'd never felt anything more sweet.

_'You like when I do this?'_ Lysander thought to me as he nipped the nape of my neck.

_'Don't stop...' _Is all I could muster.

Our thoughts perhaps were the most intense; frantic and fervent, they were barely detectable at all. It was mostly feelings rather than words.

***KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!***

_Seriously? _We separated in a millisecond, both as alert as deer in headlights at the sudden knocking that erupted from behind the door, snapping us out of a most daring state of mind.

"You two alright in there? I heard crashing..." Leigh shouted from the other side of the door. Lysander ran a haphazard hand through his messy hair as he sighed and straightened out his cravat scarf, glancing over to me with a smirk while I fixed my hat and scarf, modifying my position to attempt nonchalance.

Lysander opened the door, his face as scarlet as mine, and smiled at Leigh. "Sorry for the noise- Luna was just assisting me in um...moving boxes." I'd hardly ever seen Lysander falter to talk or keep a straight face like this. Leigh glanced behind him to me, and I shrugged, chewing my raw lips and pointing to the fallen box of bubble wrap on the floor.

A devious smirk curled up to Leigh's cheeks and he shook his head. "Ooh...I see. Sorry for interrupting that, little brother. Let me know if you need anything, you know I keep certain box-moving-'things' in my wallet- if you catch my drift." Leigh winked and I could have died.

"No, no! It's not like _that!_ We were just..." Lysander tried, but I could tell that Leigh didn't need to read our minds to know exactly what he had walked in on.

"Moving boxes, you told me. Resume, resume!" Leigh laughed, giving us a teasing wink before closing the door again. Lysander buried his head in his hands and I couldn't help but to giggle as I leaned up against the wall, completely frazzled from head to toe.

"I'm sorry Luna; I completely lost control."

"I think we both did." I was laughing as I made my way to his open arms and became engulfed in his embrace. He kissed my forehead, our thoughts agreeing about how amazing we both felt.

"I imagine you've got a time limit...don't you?" Lysander reminded me. My heart dropped and I looked down to the watch around my wrist. I'd been gone already for almost a half-hour and unfortunately needed to get a move on. Biting my lip, I shook my head.

"Such a pity...I haven't had nearly enough time with you." Lysander sighed, picking up the fallen box and setting it on the shelf before taking my hand in his and leading me down the hallway.

_'There's never enough time.'_

_'That's an understatement, my dear.'_

We passed through the curtain and back to the store front where Leigh stood folding t-shirts. "Gosh, that was quick! I guess it's normal though; it happens to the best of us." Leigh laughed. Lysander's eyes grew wide and he gritted his teeth, shaking his head at his brother. I had to admit to myself that I didn't exactly know what Leigh was referring to at all, but could feel Lysander's embarrassment.

_'Don't mind him...he's very immature.'_ Lysander thought to me as Leigh chuckled at his little brother's humiliation.

_'He's fine. I honestly don't even know what he's talking about. Euphemisms of some sort?' _I admitted with a giggle to Lysander in our secret conversation.

_'God, you're so endearing. Stay just as innocent as you are, my sweet love.' _Lysander turned to give me a genuine smile.

_'You're trying to keep me innocent? Well, so far you're not doing a great job of it and I can't say I'm that upset about it.' _I giggled to him, scrunching my nose deviously.

Lysander gasped playfully and winked at me while Leigh stared at us, an eyebrow raised as he watched our quirky expressions.

"What, are you two communicating telekineticly or something?" Leigh laughed, causing Lysander and I both to tense up, gawky laughter rolling off our bitten tongues.

"Telekinesis is moving things with your mind, like Carrie." I laughed, trying to make a joke of it.

"Who's Carrie?" Leigh tilted his head as Lysander and I both burst into laughter.

_'He doesn't read much.'_ Lysander informed me in his mind.

"Oh! Before I forget- close your eyes, Luna!" Leigh blurted suddenly, getting an idea in his mind. Lysander looked as confused as I did and I shrugged, covering my eyes with my hands and deciding not to venture into his thoughts. I stood there and heard Lysander take a few steps towards Leigh, their footsteps combining together.

"Hold your hands out." Leigh instructed, before placing something soft and bulky in my waiting arms. I opened my eyes and looked down at a black cotton pea coat draped carefully over my arms.

"What's this?" I asked, even though I already knew as I held it up, admiring the stitching and big, black shiny buttons lining the coat.

"It's your new winter coat!" Leigh expressed, Lysander smiling to himself, his annoyance with his brother doing a 180.

"Wait, what? No...I can't accept this! It must be worth hundreds!" I gasped, my eyes growing wide.

"Lysander hasn't told you the best part about dating a Larkin, has he? You honestly didn't think I was going to hold out on you, did you? If you want to take a look around you can have anything your little heart desires; my personal thanks for making my little brother so happy!" Leigh expressed. I shook my head, completely flustered and turning to Lysander for answers.

"Go on, try it on!" Lysander pushed me, backing me into a wall where I couldn't say no. Lysander took the coat from my hands and lead me to a circle of mirrors, lovingly slipping the coat on as I snaked my arms through the sleeves. He walked to the front and started to button it closed for me.

_'I've got it!'_

_'I insist.' _Lysander thought with a half-smirk and smoldering eyes as he continued to do up the buttons for me. Buckling the strap in the front that separated the mid-section and the hips, it fit me like a glove and I was secretly completely obsessed with it as I stared at myself in the mirrors, flattening the collar and turning side to side. Lysander beamed as he watched me.

"You're stunning..." Lysander muttered, seemingly memorized.

"That was made for you, sweetheart." Leigh blurted, peeking behind Lysander as my cheeks flamed on brighter than a wildfire.

"Th-thank you, Leigh. It's so beautiful...are you sure?" I turned to ask, feeling guilty for taking anything from anybody.

"I'm positive! Being single saves me a lot of clothes; might as well give them to my brother's pretty girlfriend instead!" He expressed.

"Thank you..." Was all I could draft as Lysander put a hand on my shoulder and smiled down at me.

"Thanks Leigh." He turned to say. Leigh reached a hand out and messed with his little brother's hair before walking back to his shirt display.

"Don't forget what I said, Luna; you're welcome to come in any time and take what you like! Maybe sometime you can come over and take a look at some of my sketches, too. We still need to have our fashion talk!" Leigh called over to us as we stood, hand in hand, still encircled by mirrors.

"Yes we certainly do! I look forward to it, thanks again!" I called to him, never breaking eye contact with Lysander.

Lysander sighed, squeezing my hands in his. "I wish I could take you away from here. I don't want you to leave..."

"Why don't you?" I whispered, smirking playfully. Lysander rolled his eyes, pressing his forehead against mine.

_'Because your father would surely see to it that I was publicly stoned to death or beheaded. It might be worth it, though.'_ He winked at the last part, to which I cringed and cupped his face in my hands.

_'I'd never let anyone hurt you!'_ I told him, practically swooning from his intense eye contact.

I was quite certain now that I had to leave, and didn't even want to look at my watch. My eyes dropped and I skewed my mouth uncomfortably to the side. _'I'm going to miss you.' _Lysander concurred wholeheartedly.

"Let me walk you to your car." He offered, leading me through the shop where I waved one last goodbye to Leigh and braced myself for the bitter cold. It hit us like a ton of bricks, but it wasn't nearly as harsh as it had been before I had a coat to protect me.

_'You were walking around in this weather with no coat?'_ Lysander thought as he squeezed my hand and rubbed his shivering body while we trudged through the strong wind that seemed to want to push us back inside.

_'I'm still in a California state of mind, I guess.'_

_'My poor girl...I'm so glad we got you a coat, beautiful.' _He pried the car door open for me and I slipped in, fastening my seat belt. Lysander leaned in and planted a longing kiss on my lips, reaching to cup my face in his hands. _'I love you so much. Please drive safely and text me when you get to the grocery store.'_

_'I will...I'll miss you. I love you.' _I never wanted to stop kissing him, but I knew that the clock was ticking and I really, really didn't need to cause any suspicion with father.

Lysander pulled away and closed my door, blowing me a kiss through the glass while I started the car and blew him a kiss right back trying my best not to get upset. I'd get to spend all day with him tomorrow; but tomorrow just wasn't soon enough.

I watched him out my rear view mirrors until I couldn't anymore and raced to the grocery store, quickly picking up everything on the list and hurrying back to the car again to get home in a timely manner. I was sure to take my new jacket off and lay it down in the back seat; there was no way I'd be able to explain it to my father and would have to grab it while he was in his office later.

When I finally pulled into the driveway, the clock rolled over signifying the end of my hour out on the town. Was an hour reasonable? I guess I'd find out. I gathered the groceries in my hands and pushed through the wind to the front door, backing through and hobbling to the kitchen as father watched me from the couch.

"How was your trip to town?" Father asked, pausing the TV to look up as I set the bags on the counter and began putting the food away.

"It was fine...the store was really busy." I breathed, zipping my mind shut tight.

"Well, it is Sunday. Everyone tries to get their shopping done for the week on Sundays. Anything exciting happen?" He asked, getting up from the couch and walking into the kitchen.

I shrugged, stuffing the newest box of Poptarts right beside the two others in the cabinets. "Nope! Just a normal trip to the store!" I told him with a straight face.

"You were gone for a while...I was just about to call and make sure you were alright! It's cold out there, huh? We should get you a nice coat. There's a boutique in town; we could go there now if you'd like and get you one?"

Oh father..._now _you say something? It killed me to pass up the offer to go right back to Lysander, but I knew exactly how to deter the suggestion.

"Yeah, Lysander's brother owns it! He's working there today..." I told him.

"Oh, really? _Well_...you _are _grounded...will your sweaters work for now until we can get there sometime this week?" Father switched flips just as I had suspected he would.

"My sweaters will be just fine! I wasn't too cold out there, anyway." I lied. I could probably get away with telling him that Lysander gave me the coat sometime during the approaching week. He'd be pleased about saving the money, anyway.

As I turned my head to think up a spot for the paper towels, I heard father gasp and felt his burning stare. I slowly turned my head to him and his eyes were like daggers.

"W-what's wrong?" I asked him, tilting my head.

"_Luna._..what in GOD'S NAME is that on your neck!?" He blew up, pointing a shaky finger in my direction. I clasped my hand over my neck instinctively and my eyes grew wide when I realized that Lysander must've given me..._a hickey_.

My lips tried to speak, but couldn't find words. "Wh-what're you talking about?" I strained to pretend I had no idea.

"You know _damn well_ what I'm talking about! Look in the mirror and see for yourself!" He shouted, his entire face red and his eyes bulging from their sockets.

I rushed to the half-bathroom beside the kitchen and my own eyes were wide when they spotted the hickey that must've developed after I'd left the shop, otherwise Lysander and Leigh would have certainly pointed it out.

"Oh this mark? That's from...that's from a baseball!" I shouted from the bathroom, wincing at my spur-of-the-moment, terrible, _terrible _excuse.

"A baseball? Seriously, Luna?!" Father was only growing angrier, and I rushed out of the bathroom to elaborate on my story.

"Yes! I swear! A couple of kids were playing catch in the parking lot at the grocery store and hit me straight in the neck with a stray baseball!" I told him, rubbing the mark on my neck. I wasn't a liar, and it felt just as wrong as it did foolish.

"How stupid do you think I am?" Father snarled.

"What do you think it is, father? Why would I lie about that? You know I'd never lie to you..." I felt absolutely horrible lying over and over again, but it was completely necessary.

Father pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose, grinding his teeth as he tried to hold back his anger. _Please believe me...please, please believe me. _

"I _want_ to believe you, Luna...please don't tell me that mark is from Lysander." He strained through his teeth.

It was time to play stupid. "You think Lysander would hit me with a baseball?!" I gasped.

Father chuckled a desperate laugh, shaking his head. "No Lulu, I don't think Lysander would hit you with a baseball...oh, Lord." He laughed, burying his face in his hands and resting his elbows on the counter.

"What's wrong, father? You think Lysander's hurting me?" I had to keep up with this act...he _couldn't_ find out.

"Forget I said anything and put some ice on that, okay? Go on up to your room and do your homework. I'll have dinner ready soon." He told me, still holding back desperate snickers. I backed away slowly, not sure at all what to say.

"Oh-okay...sorry for making you worry, father." I muttered, grabbing my bag and running up the stairs to my room, shutting the door and promptly grabbing for my phone.

Sitting on the foot of my bed, I began to type up a teasing text message to the boy that plagued my thoughts and had my heart.

_'You sir, are in big trouble!' _I smiled as I sent the text, beginning a vicious cycle of flirtatious messages and starting up another round of our favorite game.

* * *

**A/N: Yay! I'm so glad I was able to finish this chapter so quickly! I got snowed in, so I've gotten some awesome down time; it's been nice! Thank you all again for your incredible reviews! Are you excited for Carooke's reaction? I know I am! :D**


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen: Bizarre**

* * *

"Luna..." Father breathed, pulling the car through a stoplight. "Can I trust you to be responsible today?"

_I'm sorry, but Luna isn't here right now- please leave a message._

I was on another planet; legs bobbing up and down, palms sweating, heart racing. _Lysander, Lysander, Lysander, Lysander...I'm on my way to see Lysander; spend all day with him... _I turned to father only when the fact that he had actually said something registered in my mind.

"Hmm? Oh, of course you can!" Trying _way_ too hard, I flashed him a bright, lopsided smile and perked my head to seem alert. Father was working late again today and I couldn't possibly have been happier. "Lysander and I are going to study at the library for a while, and then he'll drive me home!" _Lies...all lies._

"I don't want you two at the house alone...or anywhere alone, for that matter. Promise that you'll stay at the library until I call you?" _No...I don't promise. I can't. _

How am I suppose to look my father in the eyes and promise him that I'll stay in the library even though I already know that I'm not going to? I was _so_ very thankful for my strong ability to seal my mind shut tight when I had to, but I could tell it made father a bit suspicious. It always did.

"We'll surely be buried in homework!" I blurted, trying not to use the P word. It wasn't a promise. There was only one promise I could make: I _wouldn't _be at the library after school.

My heart knew that Lysander was close, and as the high school came into view it was pounding in my throat. Right away I was scanning the parking lots, the grounds, the garden, everywhere. His luminescent eyes came into view almost instantly as we pulled up at the drop-off curb in front of the school. They penetrated my thin skin like a raw cut from a sharp knife. I was breathless.

He was beautiful as ever, standing there like a dream in his signature elegant attire, dewy-eyed and gazing. Windswept tufts of burnished silver-grey hair framed his intense expression and his mouth was set in a steely line, his jaw stoic. He stood leaning against the sassafras tree that decorated the entrance; beautifully mismatched eyes were scanning, searching, falling upon me.

I wanted him so much it hurt. My blood ran cold; desire pooling and unfurling across my entire body. I could feel my lips part into a wild grin and when he saw me his face grew soft and he smiled, lighting up the morning brighter than the sun ever could as he made his way to the car.

Father parked, pulling me in for a hug and muttering his rules and expectations over again in his mind to me. After saying goodbye, I reached for the door handle only to look up and see that Lysander had beat me to it. He pulled the door open, outstretching a hand to usher me out.

_'Good morning, Luna.'_

"Good morning, Mr. Broderick!" Lysander peered into the car with a smile as he helped me to my feet from inside the low, compact car.

"Lysander. Good to see you. Please make sure that Luna behaves herself today after school." Father called from the drivers side as I joined Lysander on the sidewalk.

"You have my word, sir." Lysander gestured ever-so convincingly. My father smirked and gave him a nod right back before turning to me and furrowing his brows, the smile running away from his face.

_'Be good Luna...and Lysander, don't make me hate you." _

I heard Lysander swallow the presumed lump in his throat, nodding his head theatrically. _'I won't.'_

_'I will.' _I thought, our two fluttering minds combining to make for a probably very confusing reply for father. He cleared his throat, switching to his voice.

"I love you, Lulu." I was slightly humiliated, and I watched a charming smirk twist onto Lysander's lips.

"I love you too, father."

"Have a delightful day, Mr. Broderick!"

The Jetta was soon out of sight, leaving me the happiest girl at Sweet Amoris High School and quite possibly the entire world. In an instant, soft lips brushed across my own leaving sweet sparks in their wake. I had yearned for this and I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him in for more. Students passed by, probably staring but I didn't care and I never would. I wanted _everyone_ to know that Lysander was mine.

_'I missed you, my beautiful girl.' _He pulled away, looping his fingers through mine and staring straight through to my devoted soul.

_'I've missed you more... _On tip-toes I kissed him again.

"Let's see this baseball bruise, shall we?" He hummed mischievously, tugging at the scarf wrapped tightly around my neck. I flushed, biting my lip and looking up to him while he snickered. He had made relentless fun of me for my fabricated alibi last night when I told him, but only after he was done apologizing for leaving the mark in the first place.

He moved the scarf down and his eyes widened at the purple-red welt on my neck. "I did that?"

"You and your glorious lips, my love." I giggled. Lysander looked left and then right, before leaning down to press his lips to the same spot again, sending wild chills galloping across my entire body. I quickly pulled my scarf up as he impishly grinned, his eyes gleaming on like a wildfire.

"Come on, we're going to be late if you keep tempting me like this." He giggled, pulling me towards the school.

"_I'm _tempting _you_?"

Lysander could only offer a wink as we trudged the stairs, eager for everyone to share in our happiness.

* * *

_'I've never seen Lysander with a girl before...'_

_'Luna and Lysander, they're together now?'_

_'They make a cute couple...' _

_'Those two weird kids in my English class...makes sense.' _

Lysander looked down at me, iridescent like a child on Christmas admiring a shiny new toy as we walked the crowded hallways. Everyone seemed to clear a path, stepping back and gawking on as if they'd never seen two people so in love. Marching straight for the door at the back of the school, my hand tensed around his.

"They'll be out by the benches?" I was anxious, pulling strands of straight, clean hair through the fingers of my free hand to quell the excitement. Lysander squeezed my hand, looking down with that renowned heart-stopping smile. His lips separated to show off straight, white teeth that looked almost too flawlessly-alined to be true. He must have had braces at one time in his life...

"Just like every morning. Even when it's cold outside we always meet here. It's tradition. And yes, I wore braces in middle school." Lysander winked, his entire expression an ode to his constant spying on my thoughts. He still had the ability to make me simmer like a kettle of boiling water and even the tips of my fingers seemed to blush. He was always listening, and I loved it.

"They must've been adorable." I laughed, stalling time just a little.

_'Oh no, no they weren't. I was pathetic-looking in middle school, believe me.' _A fierce blush dusted his porcelain cheeks.

_'You're beautiful now just like you've been your whole life. Maybe I can get Leigh to show me a picture someday...' _My nose itched as the tip of a giggle tickled it on it's way out and Lysander coltishly rolled his eyes, squeezing onto my hand to remind me of our obligations.

We looked at each other with confident grins before Lysander pushed the door open, leading me out to the cold, harsh wind that didn't phase me at all. The swift pump of adrenaline throughout my entire body and the tension between Lysander and I was like a fire. The sun blinded me at first and I put up a hand to shield myself, trusting Lysander to lead me safely.

I rubbed my eyes and peered on as we approached the bench. Castiel was the first to hear the doors open and close, and I watched his head turn and his eyes fall on us mid-sentence. His double-take was unmistakable and with wide eyes he ran a cool hand through his hair as he laughed, a little dumbfounded. A big, goofy grin cracked through his concrete face, the muscles in his defined cheeks twitching with his disbelieving chuckles. He tapped Brooke's shoulder as she sat and talked to Rosalya, prompting them both to look up. Brooke had to take two looks just like Castiel, her eyes narrowing at the sight of our clasped hands. I watched them slowly widen and her mouth form an 'O' as she jumped up, balling her fists and shrieking out loud as she ran to us.

"No way...No way! Are you two...?" She could hardly form words as she lunged forward, leading the others along.

Lysander's cheeks must've hurt from smiling so wide. He looked down at me and winked. "I'd like to introduce you all to my _beautiful girlfriend,_ Luna Broderick." I couldn't help but to beam up at him. I was _so_ proud to be his.

"When did this happen!?" Rosalya screeched.

"I knew it! Didn't I know it, Cas?!" Brooke came over to both of us, wrapping us up in her arms and squealing in hysteria.

"Yes you did, little girl. Your intuition is improving." Castiel snickered, walking up and placing a hand on Lysander's shoulders. Rosalya trotted over in high-heeled boots, cooing under her breath.

"I'm happy for you, bro. Seems like you learned a thing or two from me last year on being proactive." Castiel winked a boyish nod to his best friend. I could feel Lysander's skin twitching with excitement. It was our time, and we owned it.

Brooke came up, taking my free hand and ripping me from Lysander to join her and Rosalya. I looked back for a moment and watched as Lysander's now-empty hand instinctively reached out for mine. Turning back to face Brooke and Rosalya, I was met with two wide-eyed, waiting faces. "Details!"

Red and flustered, I ran a hand through my hair, telling them the story of us. Not the full story, of course, because it was Lysander and I's secret that brought us together, but they definitely got the main idea. They were squealing, oohing and aahing over and over.

"Does your dad like him?"

"Yes, I think so." They naturally had questions, and I was more than glad to answer them.

"It was your first kiss, too?"

"Is he a good kisser?"

"You guys didn't do it yet, did you?"

Or...maybe not. My fingers whisked my sweeping bangs back as I huffed, biting onto my lip. "Yes, y-yes...no?"

My face was hot, but burning with mostly excitement over fluster and I was in a daze, looking to my friends as they buzzed and chirped. They were happy for us...just as happy as we were, and I wanted to cry as the overwhelming joy welled up in my body like a tornado. My heart was home. Surrounded by the most amazing friends and with Lysander by my side, I couldn't possibly have asked for more.

Castiel made his way to me eventually, sneaking through Rosalya and Brooke's interrogation with a one-armed hug.

"If my best friend is gonna end up with anyone I'm glad it's you." He declared with a sincere smile. I'd noticed that he wasn't always the best at putting his feelings into words, especially around people he didn't really know. It meant a lot to me to be accepted by one of the people I knew held a huge part of Lysander's heart. Castiel had always been his rock, his safe place, and I glanced over to catch Lysander looking on at us with an ever-endearing smile of complete and utter bliss.

"Lys means the world to me and he deserves nothing but the best; fuck with him and you fuck with me, got it?" Castiel's face melted away into a serious glare as he pointed a finger at me and my heart sunk, making words hard to form. He didn't hold the stare for long, and once he saw my doe-eyed quivering he burst out in tongue-biting laughter.

"Cool it, Boots. I'm just fucking with you."

"Boots?" Lysander and I questioned in unison as I breathed with arrant relief.

"You're always wearing boots...I don't think I've ever even seen you in normal sneakers before. Everyone gets a nickname eventually." Castiel explained, a pompous smile lighting up his snarky expression. I was giggling happily at my new nickname that was ever so appropriate when he put it that way.

"I'm just Lys...or sometimes a number of colorful explicits if I beat him while playing Call of Duty, which I do quite often." Lysander pushed his fingers through his hair with a sneer.

"I'm Little Girl...always have been." Brooke shared, turning to Rosalya who rolled her eyes.

"Castiel calls me Creepster...and why? Because I had the decency to take an awesome candid picture of him that ultimately led to Brooke and Castiel's entire relationship!" Rosalya exclaimed, crossing her arms and shooting playful daggers towards Castiel.

"Thank you, for the millionth time, Creepster." Castiel was just fishing for trouble, as usual.

My stomach hurt from laughing so hard as everyone stood around with smiling faces, playfully bantering back and forth. Sneaking over to Lysander's waiting hand once more, I was grateful that the first class of the day wouldn't separate us just yet.

Brooke eventually veered away from the group, grabbing her messenger bag and fishing through it. When she pulled out a red ringed composition notebook and began leafing through the pages, I was instantly tugging Lysander for the door.

"The lost and found! We've got to get there before class starts!"

A lightbulb clicked in Lysander's eyes and he gasped, remembering his long-lost notebook and agreeing on the endeavor at hand. Giving our friends a quick goodbye, we rushed into the school and straight for the office where a cardboard box full of random mislaid items sat under the reception desk. Lysander pulled the box out and we immediately started digging through.

_'It's not in here...'_ Lysander's thoughts were dripping with anxiety.

_'Yes it is. It has to be.' _I took every single item out and laid it on the floor, my own heartbeat irregular with worry. Lysander's intuition hadn't failed; his notebook definitely wasn't there. His sunken pale expression broke my heart, and I stood, not taking no for an answer.

"Excuse me, is this everything? The only lost and found?" I tapped one of the school receptionists on the shoulder. She turned and looked down at the emptied box and the motley array of items strung about the floor.

"Sorry, but that's the one and only. We can certainly put a sign up at the bulletin board for whatever it is you're missing, though..." She explained, skewing her mouth to the side and resting her hands on her knees.

"I'll make a sign! I'll make one right now..." Pulling out a sketch pad from my knapsack I went to get on my knees and get to work, but Lysander put a hand on my shoulder.

"Come dear, we need to get to class..." He seemed so troubled, like the whereabouts of his notebook was simply eating him from the inside out. My entire face fell and I reluctantly got up, nodding my head. Gathering his shaky palms in my hands, my eye contact reached for his. His pupils found mine and I could tell that even though a part of his world felt like it was crumbling to pieces, he was somehow put at ease.

"We'll find it..._I'll_ find it, I promise you." I wanted him to know that his problems meant just as much to me as they did him; I wanted him to know that he wasn't ever alone.

Lysander's crestfallen cheekbones turned up to support his smile and he shrugged. "Don't worry your pretty little mind about it. As long as I have you I don't need anything else. Songs and ideas will come and go but there's only one Luna. I won't waste another minute being upset when I have so much to be grateful for."

"It's okay to be upset though, Lysander. Losing any one of my notebooks would be an utter calamity, as I imagine it is for you. All of your hard work is in there...it's a lot to lose. Have faith in me, though. I'll find it."

Lysander rested his forehead on mine and drew air into his probably tight lungs. _'You amaze me...all my faith lies within you, Luna. Not for the notebook...but for everything good in my life.'_

* * *

As if I didn't already love English class enough, having my telepathic boyfriend seated right beside me made it a thousand times better. Lectures on books and short stories we'd already read and analyzed prompted secret conversations that no one else could hear. Every so often, Lysander would think something silly and I'd let a few unbidden giggles slip out, causing the teacher or a few students to shoot me disapproving looks. I could only hope that they didn't think I was laughing at the outcome of Tom Robinson's trial or unfortunate fate of The Lottery's marked slip; whichever story we were discussing at the time.

With each page of classwork we were given, Lysander and I playfully exchanged answers in our heads, working through with immaculate timing in hopes that we'd be let out early. Unfortunately, with each turned in worksheet came another and another until the class bells rang.

With the mere thought of separating for our next classes we were reduced to nothing but longing sighs and doleful eyes. Incidentally I had forgotten completely about the rest of the school day. I had four other classes to attend without Lysander, and wouldn't see him again until lunch or in the hallways. I didn't care who watched us nuzzle each other in our melodramatic see-you-soons and didn't bother to hear what they thought, either. Lysander walked me to my next class, kissing me goodbye for all to see.

For some reason I worked with an extra pinch of diligence and it didn't take long for me to finish all of my classwork for the day in U.S History. It delighted Mr. Faraize to see my eager rapt and he gladly dismissed me from class early. At first, I was simply ecstatic to run through the hallways to Lysander, but it soon occurred to me that he was definitely still in class and all I had left to do was wait.

Aimlessly wandering the halls, I was taking random lefts and rights. Where was I suppose to go? Walk past Lysander's classroom and send him messages through the walls until he somehow gets himself out of class? Maybe to the library? That way at least I could tell father that I _had _been there...

"Oh look!" The clicking of heels echoed off the lockers and her shrill voice was like a knife in the back.

_Amber..._

"If it isn't _Little Miss Perfect_!" She added, spitting the name like a bad taste in her mouth. Turning around, I watched as she came towards me, checking her nails as she waddled down the halls. I swallowed bile and instinctively waved a helpless hand at her, trying my best to be friendly.

"So you and Lysander, huh? _What on earth_ do you see in that two-toned freak of nature? Did he tell you what happened to his face to make him so ugly?" She sardonically teased. My jaw might as well have hit the ground.

_What did she just say?_

"You're the first girl I've ever even seen talk to him...how _charitable_ of you. Honestly, you could do much better...his brother must've gotten the attractive genes; maybe you can skip through the entire family!" She laughed, obviously feeding off my blank, painful expression. A punch of raw, untamed rage ran through my veins like gasoline on a fire. She could cut me down all she wanted but I wouldn't stand to hear her make fun of Lysander. Not for one more second.

"Don't talk about him like that...he's beautiful! You don't even know him!" My shy, sugar-coated voice cracked as it hit a tone higher than it was used to.

"Please...like I'd ever give _him_ the time of day. At least Lysander found a girl blind enough to look past his crippling hideousness. He's honestly _painful_ to look at. I'd probably jump off a bridge if I was born looking like that."

"Stop it! None of that is true!" I tried to mumble through my cracking voice. She just laughed, rolling her eyes and talking over me.

"He's so uptight, he probably desperately needs to get laid. If you're anything like Brooke than I'm sure _that's _already happened."

I took a step towards her, sweat dripping through the cracks of my palms as I balled them up. I wouldn't hear another word.

"Sh-shut up!"

"Or what? You're going to hit me? I'd love to see you try, sweetheart." Amber laughed maliciously. I didn't know what to do or how to handle myself. I took another step towards her, foolishly hoping that my somehow my dagger-stare would intimate her.

"You're cute. While we're here alone, got any money on you?" She looked down at my bag with a manic smirk. I shook my head and pulled my knapsack closer to my body, taking steps back as she strode towards me confidently.

She outstretched her arms all at once and pushed me up against the lockers; the wind knocked out of me immediately as I hit them with a loud clank. She shoved me once more, this time sending my frail body ricocheting against the aluminum, falling hard onto the floor in a pile of helplessness. I was whiplashed and just wanted to cry but instead I glared up at her with fire in my eyes. I couldn't back down this easy.

"Give me your bag!" She hissed down at me, tapping her foot and waiting for me to deliver. I held tight to my bag; she'd pry it from my cold, dead hands.

"Are you deaf?" She spat, winding her foot up to kick me. My eyes were pressed shut, anticipating the pain.

"**AMBER!" **I heard shouted from across the hallway as hard, fast footsteps got louder and louder. She looked over and I knew I'd been saved when I heard his frantic thoughts in mine.

"Step away from her now!" Lysander cried, storming down the hallway like a knight in shining Victorian armor.

"Oh, look who it is! Freak Show himself!" Amber laughed as I tried to pick my shaken body off the ground. Lysander shook with anger. I could hear him struggling to take fleeting breaths and watched his skin spasm as he walked closer to her.

His mind was suddenly..._blocked? _Why was it blocked? I was just inside it...what was going on? All I could do was stare, I didn't even know how to speak.

"Back off, psycho!" Amber put her hands up as Lysander backed her against the lockers, his hands clenched into tight fists of rage. He grabbed her wrist, his eyes almost glowing as they twitched. Amber opened her mouth to speak but suddenly shut it as I watched her; caught in his eye contact and limp, staring like she was hypnotized. She didn't even blink.

"Don't you _ever _touch her again..._ever again._" He hissed at her in a low, daunting voice that sent shivers down my spine. Amber gazed silently into his eyes, nodding her head.

"Apologize to her, now."

"Lysander, she doesn't have to..." I peeped, trying to brush all of the bad feelings away.

"_Now!_" He barked. Amber nodded her head, turning to me and blinking her eyes all at once.

"I...I'm sorry, Luna." She droned, almost dazed as she tilted her head and scratched at her scalp. Lysander watched on in as much confusion as I was while she actually followed his instructions to a tee.

"Leave. Get out of here, now." He spat.

Without another word, she turned on a dime and walked off as if nothing happened and before I could ask one question Lysander was scooping me up in his arms.

"Oh my God, Luna...I'm so sorry...are you alright? Are you hurt?" He held my shoulders in his hands and searched my body for so much as one scratch. I was still paralyzed, unaware of how to react.

"Wh-what _was_ that?" I blurted, motioning to Amber as she disappeared around a corner. Lysander looked over his shoulder and then to me, shrugging as I dusted myself off.

"She usually doesn't listen _that _well. I guess I managed to intimidate her enough..." He turned back to me. "Come, let's get you to the infirmary...I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you, my angel." He added, grabbing for my hand.

"I'm fine, promise. Wh-why are you blocking from me?" I shyly asked.

Lysander tilted his head. "I'm blocked?" He asked, closing his eyes and immediately projecting a thought to me. _'Can you hear me now?' _

_'Lysander...that was really bizarre.' _

Lysander took a step towards me, gathering my sweating hands in his and bringing them to his mouth, kissing my knuckles with a piercing stare. _'I know...I don't know what happened. I just got so angry- maybe my mind flips the switch under stress or something.' _

The thing was, I wasn't even really referring to him being blocked at all. Amber's eerie behavior didn't sit well with me and kept replaying over and over in my mind. I tried to string together a sentence but even in my mind the words were shrouded with unbidden thoughts, pervading me and begging for an explanation.

_'Did I do something wrong? I was only trying to protect you...I'm sorry if I __scared you. Please don't be afraid of me, Luna. It would kill me...' _Lysander looked straight through my dazed vacancy, his face soaking with distraught as his eyes searched mine for a sign.

I tried to blink the sickly feeling in my stomach away and cracked a warm smile. _'I could never be afraid of you...I love you so much. You didn't do anything wrong; you're perfect. I'm just trying to figure out why Amber would back down so easily. I haven't been here long, but I know what kind of a person she is and that just wasn't her nature...'_

_'I know...maybe she's on drugs? That would explain the sudden vacancy.'_ Lysander suggested, checking me again for scratches.

_'Yeah, maybe that's it.' _I pushed through a smile. Lysander soon saw the thoughts in the back corner of my mind and his face dropped into a heartbreaking pout.

_'Y-you think I did something to her?' _

I weaved my fingers into his hair, holding his face in place and looking him in the eyes, searching his mind. If he did, he surely didn't intend to. There wasn't a single trace of any premeditation...he was even more confused than I was.

_'No, no I don't.' _And I didn't. Surely Lysander would know if he had brainwashed her...surely you have to intend to do something like that, right? You can't accidentally brainwash someone; it's completely ludicrous. '_You're perfect, Lysander. Don't you worry about a thing. Everything is perfect.' _


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**Chapter Seventeen: Team Lysander**

My life was like something from movie or maybe a dream; everything was flawless perfection. I couldn't stop looking around, pinching myself or reaching out to touch Lysander's face – just to make sure that everything was really, really real.

Our world only seemed more stunning each time we trudged through the ugly, twisted forest to get there, even if the leaves were dying, the temperature was dropping, and rest of the world around us was bracing itself for a harsh, Northern winter. Our world was seemingly immune to the will of Mother Nature.

It was the perfect symbol of us, Lysander had pointed out as we spent the evening rolling in the grass and watching the clouds. Our love only grew more beautiful every second and it didn't matter what the world would throw at us, we just knew we'd always be immune.

We shared another beautiful I-don't-know-how-many-hours lost in each other's eyes and minds. When it came time for us to part, we joked about driving right past my house and keeping on until his car ran out of gas, taking whatever money we had in our pockets to start a new life, telling people's fortunes for cash and using our gifts to pick out certain details that would make us seem legitimate. Doubling over in the passenger's seat with laughter it never occurred to me until I was alone in my room that we had _actually_ entertained the idea of running away together.

Perhaps the most alarming part of that realization was the fact that if Lysander ever did just keep on driving, I'd probably go with him.

It frightened me just about as much as it thrilled me...but could I really just up and leave my father? Did I truly have that kind of selfishness in my soul? I was all he had. His only family; and he was all I had my whole life up until now. He'd been both my mother and my father and really did I love and respect him with all my heart.

Yes, surely I would _never_ leave my father. Running away to join the circus with Lysander would stay a fantasy in my mind, but God, was it exciting to think about.

Tuesday morning I rubbed my eyes to the sound of a baying alarm clock, knowing instantly that father had come in to set it before presumably leaving for work early again so that I'd wake up in time on my own. He left another note on the marble counter in vibrant black Sharpie, along with a bagged lunch and some cash which I had come to assume was probably out of guilt for always being absent.

**Good Morning Lulu. Hope it won't be much trouble walking today. Be safe and behave yourself. I'll pick you up after school. **

**Let's watch a movie and order out tonight. Sushi and Curry Rice? **

**Love you, have a great day. Learn something!**

Sushi and Curry Rice, hm? Well, it was certainly no substitute for Lysander-kisses and goat-shaped-clouds, but it really wasn't a practical option for me to spend every single waking moment with him. I knew I'd have to take breaks from him and our world, but I wasn't thrilled about it.

I felt guilty. Father was trying to hold on to me, watching me grow up all at once before his very eyes. He was desperately trying to keep things the way they've always been and I'd try my very best to enjoy movie night just as I would if father was still the only person that mattered in my life, but texting Lysander throughout the entire thing wasn't debatable.

_'Good morning :) I missed you last night. Father went into work early; maybe I'll run into you on the street again? Fingers crossed.' _My slow, still-tired fingers took to my phone; texting Lysander was second nature now and I barely had to think, my mind just transferred the words through the keys every time.

Stumbling back up the stairs to my bedroom to get dressed, my phone's _blip_ of a text-tone shot through my waiting ears and I eagerly opened the new message.

_'Good morning, beautiful. I'd be willing to bet I missed you more. I'm pleased to hear of that possibility. I love you.' _

Why is he so perfect? Why does he have the ability to melt me in less than thirty words? I'd be asking myself questions like that for a lifetime. Holding the phone to my chest, I danced to the closet like a child and rummaged through, dying to wear my new jacket to school for the first time.

I threw on a thin black-collared white blouse over a black camisole with black jeans and boots (per my nick-namesake, of course.) Pulling a suede boot up and over the straight-legged jeans, the entire house was suddenly echoing with the monotone ringing of a doorbell and I shook my head, certain I was going crazy. Did we even _have _a doorbell? If we did, I was certain it'd never been rung before.

When the same flat tone droned through the house again I sprang up, creeping down the stairs, holding onto the wall while peeking my head to get a glimpse of the ringer beforehand. I'd seen those crime shows...father kept a loaded .357 under his bed and I knew how to use it.

Who in their right mind would be ringing my doorbell at this hour, anyway?

Squinting my eyes to get a better glimpse, colors came into view. Silver hair and mismatched eyes shined through the windows that lined the front door and I was giggling at his arched eyebrows, watching me peep out from behind the wall.

Lysander!

In a second I was throwing myself down the stairs in a mad dash to usher him right inside. I couldn't unlock the door fast enough, my palms sweating with exhilaration.

"Wh-what are you doing here? It's only seven fifteen!" Were my first frantic words as he wrapped his long arms around my waist. His decadent scent was in my nose again and I was awake and alive, swooning into his chest and nuzzling his soft, velvety jacket while he kissed my head.

"I figured I'd pick you up today. I know I'm quite early, but I couldn't help myself. You're looking quite beautiful this morning, Miss Luna." Lysander's eyes very surreptitiously trickled down to my feet and back up to my eyes and my fingers were like magnets, snaking themselves through his to the place they belonged.

"Th-thank you. As are you...I'm really, _really_ glad you're here. I still have a few things to do, though. I hope you don't mind waiting on me." Blushing violently, Lysander shook his head with a radiant smile.

"Of course not. We've got a half-hour to kill, anyway." He kissed my cheek after saying, digging in his pockets. "I brought you something..."

My head cocked itself, watching as he produced a silver foil rectangle package from his pocket. He placed it in my hands and I just gawked down at it as if it were a diamond ring or a key to the city. _'St-strawberry?'_

_'Of course!' _Lysander's smile was so contagious and his thoughts were absolutely endearing. Watching my face light up at the simplest of gifts, he was ecstatic.

I didn't care that there were three boxes of strawberry Poptarts in the cabinets a room away, this strawberry Poptart would surely be the best I ever ate. I was quick to peel back the sticky foil, sliding the first out and handing it to Lysander. He put his hands out._ 'I already ate mine! It's all yours.' _

I wouldn't take no for an answer. Strawberry Poptarts were Lysander's favorite; he'd take it if I pushed him enough and I wanted to share. _'But I want to eat breakfast with you!'_

He chuckled as he took the pastry from me, his eyes alone the tell-tale sign that he was unable to say no to me. He was under the same spell that I was.

After our quick breakfast, I turned to climb the stairs to my room. Lysander didn't follow, though, and gripping the railing, I outstretched a hand to him._ 'Aren't you coming?' _

Lysander looked a little apprehensive and he took my hand warily. _'T-to your bedroom? Are you sure?' _

It hadn't even occurred to me that I was taking Lysander to my room...what was the big deal, anyway? I guess it was just one of those unspoken taboos but I sincerely and innocently didn't see a problem with it.

_'Of course! I'd like to show you...' _I tightened my hand around his and ran up the stairs, hooking the first right and pulling him into my bedroom.

Lysander took it all in with a grin, smirking at the sight of my bed, my embarrassingly unorganized closet with clothes overflowing, my bookshelves, and the painted walls. I let go of his hand to let him explore a little. The first thing that fell into his sights were the birds, or more specifically the green and yellow lark I'd painted out of unrealized love to symbolize the very boy who stood in my room, touching his fingers to the wall to trace the wings. _'You painted these birds? These wings...they're incredible.'_

_'Thank you...' _I thought, running the brush through my hair quickly before placing it back down on the vanity and walking to him. _'Th-that's you.' _

Lysander turned his head, his fingers still pressed to the lark on the wall. _'What do you mean?' _

_'A green and yellow lark, get it?' _

Lysander looked back to 'himself' on the wall, the wildest smile tickling his cheeks and cracking through his burning pink blush. _'You enthrall me, Luna Broderick. Little things like this...you're so enchanting.'_

Flattery escaped my mouth in the form of untamed giggles. Lysander turned to me, his hands weaving themselves through my hair as his pupils searched mine; it was almost more than I could take. _'I'm so in love with you. You keep finding more ways to amaze me.' _

_'I love you so much, Lysander. You inspire me...' _

My lips ached for his, and he fulfilled my greatest desire by moving his mouth to mine, pressing his kiss against me and pulling me closer. Running a hand through his freshly blow-dried hair, its soft texture tickled the tips of my fingers and sent me reeling. Parting my lips to smile against his kiss opened a door and Lysander's tongue tiptoed into my mouth, dancing across mine and setting fireworks off in my heart. Taking steps backwards, the back of my knees locked when they hit my bed and I fell, caught by soft sheets and blankets. Lysander tumbled in sync with me, his lips never once leaving mine. Our kisses grew fervent, passionate and frantic, and with Lysander's body pressed against mine I was simply lost in him. He was all around me, his warmth, his scent, his kiss; all his love wrapping me like a blanket. I couldn't help myself. I wanted to kiss him forever, and so did he. His thoughts were tangled up mine and it would be difficult to tear them apart.

All of a sudden, a high-pitched melody cut through the silence, sending Lysander to his feet and leaving my lips smacking for more. He dug through his pocket, retrieving his ringing phone from his coat and pressing it to his ear.

"Hello Castiel..." Lysander wore a forlorn glower, his eyes never once leaving me.

"-No, no I've already eaten. Thank you, though...oh, I'm with her. Yes, hold on." He pressed the phone to his chest. "Would you like Castiel and Brooke to pick you up some breakfast? They're at the drive-thru."

I shook my head. _'No, thank you.' _

"She's already eaten as well. Thank you though...yes, see you soon." He pressed his finger to end the call, smothering his phone down into his pocket again and skewing his mouth into a crestfallen scowl, biting his lip. _'I really wish he wouldn't have called just then...' _

As disappointed as I was, catching a glimpse at the clock made me appreciate Castiel's timing. _'It's almost a good thing that he did...I could've kept on kissing you all day.' _Lysander followed my eyes to the clock on the wall, wordlessly agreeing. I pushed myself off the bed, joining him in the middle of my room.

_'Need any help getting ready?'_ He asked with an accommodating smile.

_'I think I've got it. I've just got to gather my bag and throw on a bit of makeup...'_

_'Makeup?' _Lysander snickered. _'My dear girl, what in the world do you need makeup for?' _

A blush burning across my cheeks, I shook my head. _'Just to even out my skin tone...and a little mascara for my lashes.' _

_'But Luna...can't you see how flawless you already are?' _He brought his hands to my face, caressing my cheeks with soft thumbs._ 'Sun-kissed and iridescent, there isn't so much as one blemish on your glowing, porcelain skin. And must I really get started on your long, willowy eyelashes? I'll be the first to admit that makeup can be a useful tool for some girls to highlight their features, but Luna, you need none. You're so indescribably perfect and makeup would only cover that up.'_

I could've swooned into a pile of emotions and felt light-headed as his words swept me right off my feet. _'Lysander...you're incredible. And you're the perfect one, not me...'_

Grabbing my new jacket and knapsack and rushing down the stairs, Lysander followed close behind as I slid into the kitchen to grab the lunch and money that father had left for me. He leaned over my shoulder and read the note and as much as he tried to hide it...I could _feel_ his disappointment.

_'Sounds like fun...you like sushi?' _He turned to me with a steadfast smile. Taking a beige scarf from the coat rack by the door, I fixed it around my neck, shrugging my shoulders.

_'Not as much as I like spending time with you...' _

Lysander held out his arms and I was swept away in his grasp again, nestling my head into the crook of his neck. _'It'll be good for you to spend some quality time with your father...' _

_'I know...but is it bad that I don't want to? I want to go to our world again...' _

_'I do too...' _

The promise of at least getting to spend the day in the same building for seven hours with Lysander was sweet, and we slowly made our way through the ripping winds to his charcoal-colored Corolla. Once seated comfortably beside each other he turned on the heat and started inching down the road.

"So, Friday...I know it's our one-week-anniversary, but I've got that _pointless_ student council concert fundraiser thing... It won't run late, though. Can I take you out for dinner afterward? You'll be there, right? At the concert? B-because I've already bought you a ticket..."

Our one-week-anniversary...oh my God, I thought for sure I'd be the only one counting something so little compared to how long we had together in our future. And he already bought my ticket? _He's so perfect._

"There's nothing I'd rather do on our one-weekiversay than watch you perform. I wouldn't miss it for the world! And you don't have to take me out or anything...you didn't have to buy my ticket either...but thank you, so much."

"I want to, though. That's what boyfriends do."

Staring at him while he kept his eyes and smile on the road, he had no idea that he was absentmindedly making me fall in love with him over and over again. He really was the most beautiful person I'd ever seen. The way his hair fell across his face, one side just a slight bit longer and darker than the other, and the way his light skin tone glistened in the sun, the way his eyes scanned everything, each reflecting a different emotion...it all swirled together to create Lysander and I still couldn't believe that he was truly all mine.

* * *

"Bipolar Disorder...one of the more prevalent mental disorders today. Defined by episodes of abnormal mood swings during which symptoms of mania, anger, guilt or depression occur simultaneously, people with Bipolar Disorder are candidates for a number of treatments..." My head perked up, and I was tapping my pencil to my chin as Mr. McCarren rambled on about various mental illnesses during Health Class.

_Abnormal mood swings...anger..._

_..Guilt? _

_Amber. _

Of course there was an explaination to her little episode yesterday! I felt like _such an idiot_ for ever even entertaining the idea that it could've been some kind of projection-hypnotism on Lysander's part. Amber was Bipolar! I shoud've seen it eariler, especially after hearing those depressing thoughts in her head the first time I read her.

Opening to a blank page in my notebook, I started to scribble down anything that Mr. McCarren had to offer about the disorder to share with Lysander. It would surely ease any worries that he had about what had happened yesterday. Thinking about Lysander worrying about anything at all broke my heart, and after easing one worry of his, I knew I had some more work to do before he was completely stress-free. I still had Operation Find Lysander's Notebook on the frontal lobe and I simultaneously switched back and forth from my assignments for class and thinking of where to start looking for the notebook.

I blew through the worksheets and was excused from class fifteen minutes early. It was a shame that Lysander was most likely still in class, but while chewing over countless ideas on how to go about searching for his notebook I came across a lead in the case; the only lead. Fifteen minutes would hopefully give me enough time to at least gather a little information about this lead and I quickly made my way towards the only place I'd expect to find any information at all.

"Luna! Out of class early?" Brooke chirped from her seat at the table while she and Nathaniel went over details about the upcoming concert's concession stand. I smiled as Nathaniel bounded towards me, pulling out a chair and offering me a seat. Nodding my head to answer her question wordlessly and wedging myself right between the two, questions were burning the tip of my tongue.

"Do you know anything about a um...James the gardener? Lysander lost his notebook in the garden and I'm trying to find it. So far, that's is my only lead." I didn't waste any time jumping right into the questioning.

"Oh yeah, Cas told me about that...I really hope he finds it. He has a lot of songs in there that the boys were going to try to learn." Brooke peeped over Nathaniel's beginning of an answer.

He scratched at his neck before starting again. "Jade, you mean? He's our only gardener. He's here today, actually. He's been working in the greenhouse; that's where you'll probably find him."

"Jade...right. I just thought he might have seen it this weekend; that way at least we know where it was." It was definitely a confidence boost in hearing that I'd be able to speak to Jade today. "What does he look like; just so I know when I see him?"

"Oh, you'll know him when you see him. For starters, he's got green hair, so that'll be his tell. He's nice and I'm sure he'll be helpful at any rate!" Brooke told me, tucking the pen in her hand behind her ear.

"Thank you so much! Fingers crossed that we find it!"

In an instant, I was hot on Jade's trail and made a B-line towards the door leading out to the courtyard. As I turned the hallway, I noticed that students were slowly starting to trickle from their classrooms and tried to weave myself through the small groups and growing numbers. I only had a good ten minutes until I'd meet Lysander by my locker and I seriously hoped I'd have his notebook for him. As I kept my eyes at my feet trying not to make contact with anyone, I thought I was doing considerably well in navigating until I spontaneously crashed straight into another warm body.

I was knocked back, but instantly turned up my head to get a look at whomever had been victimized by my clumsiness – and low and behold my victim had unmistakable earthy green hair and soil-covered cheeks. Over a dirty white button-up shirt he wore gardening suspenders with boots and gloves and looked to me with soft, forgiving eyes as green as the hair on his head. I turned a violent shade of scarlet; what _was_ it with me running into people?

"I'm so sorry! I didn't even see you com-" I started.

"No, no...you're fine. I wasn't paying attention to where I was walking." His voice was quiet, but somehow lively at the same time.

"Th-this may sound strange, but are you Jade, per chance?"

"Yes, that's me; Jade Greene. And what's your name?" He smiled, taking a step closer as I backed myself out of the middle of the hallway. Green hair, green eyes...Greene last name? And isn't a Jade some kind of plant, too? Okay, I'd take it...

"I'm Luna Broderick. It's a pleasure to meet you." I stuck out my hand for a shake to which he grasped with both of his dirty gloves and held an awkward stare.

"The pleasure's all mine, Luna. I've never seen you around before...you must be new. Interested in joining the gardening club? We could use some help..." He winked at the last word for some reason, and I just went along with it.

"Um...I've never really planted anything before. I'm almost positive I'd end up killing everything." I laughed, trying to make small talk before interrogating him.

"Nonsense...it's not that hard. If you're ever interested in getting dirty I could certainly teach you a thing or two. A-about gardening, I mean."

"Y-yeah, I'll keep that in mind. Truth be told, I'm not a huge fan of dirt." I shrugged my shoulders. I knew I'd be a bleak gardener; I wasn't about to get his hopes up about recruiting a new member.

"That's a shame. Well then, if it's not the garden you're interested in...what can I do for you?"

"Actually, I was wondering if you've seen something...a notebook? It was left in the garden on the bench on Friday."

"A red one? Full of fancy cursive? Yes, I remember finding it Saturday afternoon while cleaning up around the garden. I brought it straight to the lost and found but if I had known it belonged to you I would've kept it safer."

The lost and found? But...we cleaned it out entirely without so much as a trace! That can't be right...unless someone _actually took it _from the lost and found? I drew a long sigh, chewing my lip, my eyes searching the ceiling for answers. Who would want to take Lysander's notebook?

"...I can show you where the lost and found is if you don't know? Or if you do know I'll walk there with you..." Jade was mumbling, but I was barely listening at all, still deep in thought about where Lysander's notebook could possibly be.

Suddenly out of no where my skin jumped when I felt someone wrap their arm around my shoulder, looking up to see Lysander at my side, standing tall and looking straight at Jade. My mind hadn't been searching for any thoughts at the time so I actually hadn't heard him coming and was pleasantly surprised to see him. I couldn't help myself from smiling up at him, but he just kept staring at Jade.

"Luna and I appreciate your help, _Jade_..." Lysander spat his name out and to the ground out like a bad taste in his mouth. "We've got it from here...You can carry on with your gardening duties."

I watched as Lysander's eyes narrowed in on him. Jade looked down at me with a smile. "Always glad to help! It was nice to meet you, Luna." He gave me a subtle wink, and Lysander's grip on me grew just a little tighter. "See you around, Lysander!" He walked past us without another word, and Lysander grabbed my hands in his.

"I apologize on behalf of the entire male population, Luna." He snarled, looking back at Jade through clenched teeth. His face softened once he looked into my perplexed, innocent eyes as I waited for an explanation. "_Some people_ just can't control their thoughts. I understand that it's hard not to be attracted to a girl as beautiful as you, but that was just disgusting and you're so innocent...you shouldn't ever have to hear that kind of filth. It just makes my blood boil..."

I was giggling, trying to muffle them with my shoulder. Lysander looked confused. "What're you _talking _about?"

"You didn't hear his thoughts?" He looked almost relieved, but still peeved nonetheless.

"I wasn't listening at all! I didn't even hear you coming up on me!"

Lysander immediately covered his blushing face with his palm, shaking his head with a chuckle. "Me and my big mouth_._ I...I'm sorry Luna. Forget I said anything at all, sweet girl."

I raised my hands to uncover his face, offering him a lighthearted giggle. "I've probably heard worse if you're referring to the sexual thoughts in a man's head. I don't usually know what any of it means, but I don't think anything could hold a flame to the thoughts of California surfer boys or creepy boardwalk Ferris wheel workers."

"Oh, my poor sweet girl...I thought I had it bad, having to listen to random thoughts about how 'creepy' my eyes and hair are, but you...I can't imagine how revolting those thoughts must've been for you..."

"Well, I've learned which words to tune out by..." I laughed as Lysander's fingers found mine, snaking there way through. "But on the bright side, Jade did have your notebook at one point...he put it in the lost and found, which means someone must've taken it out. Is there _anyone _you can think of that would have any business with your notebook?"

Lysander sighed, obviously growing more anxious with every word, his eyes searching the hallways for a clue. "Not that I can think of. I don't have any enemies...no competition...nothing."

"Hmm...what about Nina? That girl from the concert?"

Lysander chuckled with the thought. "She's in middle school...or at least I think she is. I know she would take it if she had the chance because she's probably clinically insane, but either way, she doesn't even go here. "

"Maybe she goes to school at the mental hospital?" I blurted, instantly covering my mouth as Lysander burst into untamed laughter. Oh gosh...that was mean...

_'You're so positively cute, Luna. Even your insults are innocent. I love you.'_

Just as I mustered the strength back from feeling close to fainting over Lysander's words, I felt a tap on my shoulder and instantly heard her fluttering, cheerful thoughts fill my head.

"Hello again, Brooke!" I chirped as she came into view.

"Brooke, how are you?" Lysander added with a smile as we turned to face her.

"Hey lovebirds! Luna, you're coming to the concert on Friday night, right?" She asked with a glowing smile.

"Of course." I looked up at Lysander with a grin, "wouldn't miss it for the world!"

"Awesome! I'll make you a t-shirt, then!" Her piercing blue eyes blew up with excitement.

I couldn't help but to burst out in giggles. "A t-shirt?"

"Team Lysander, of course! You have no idea how long I've been waiting to make one!"


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen: Wings**

* * *

With my tight-fitting ashy gray Team Lysander shirt waiting under my pea coat I clambered into the passenger's seat of the Jetta, excitement mounting deep within. Father was taking me to the school since Lysander was already there, he and the boys endeavoring to get a few extra hours of practice time in before the concert. Brooke, Melody and the other student council delegates had stayed after as well to decorate the auditorium and set up the concession stand. I would've been there early to help as well if father hadn't instructed me to come home, finish all of my homework and spend some time with him. Because of his added expectations I was actually running a bit late. Despite Chaos wasn't on until 7:00 but I felt like I was cutting it close at 6:00. I would've liked to have been there even earlier.

"You're sure you won't need me to pick you up later on?" Father pulled the seat belt over his lap, sliding the key into the ignition.

"Yes. Lysander will bring me home." I smiled, a warm glow rushing through my veins with the thought of it even though it'd been a mere three hours since I'd seen him.

"Well...he best have you back before midnight."

_'Midnight? You mean it?' _I gazed up at father. Was I hearing him correctly? I honestly hadn't thought he trusted me _that_ much.

_'See? When you behave like you have this week you receive privileges. Isn't it nice to be trusted?'_

Biting my lip to quell any unbidden squeals of noisy excitement I thanked him over and over in my head.

In the blink of an eye we were pulling in to the parking lot. I'd had enough of father for one evening and made the goodbye quick, half-listening to his fatherly lecture on making good choices and pulling myself from the leather seats. I peered into the car for one last goodbye, his blue eyes piercing my skull as he arched his eyebrows. '_Remember, twelve o'clock and not a minute later!' _

Don't wait up, it IS our one-week-anniversary, after all... I rightfully blocked my mind when the uncontrollable what-I-really-means came seeping through.

_'Right, twelve o'clock, got it! Love you, father!' _

_'Love you too, Lulu.' _

It was an eerie feeling, walking through the empty, silent hallways. The bright lights practically blinded me and the stars twinkled through the windows instead of the sun that I was so used to; everything about being at the school after dark was just unsettling.

The murmur of voices only grew louder with each step I took towards the auditorium serving as a somewhat of a navigational tool. I _was_ still the new girl, after all. Now, where did Lysander say the auditorium was again? I never could understand why such a small student body had any need for a school as overwhelmingly large, but I digress.

I simply couldn't wait another minute to see Lysander perform, unfortunately though after taking a sharp turn around the corner I realized I'd have several to wait. The line of students waiting outside the auditorium doors stretched across the entire corridor, Mr. Faraize breaking a sweat as he stood, taking the tickets and obviously trying his best to move the line along in a timely manner. I patiently took my spot at the back of the line, pulling the ticket that Lysander had given me earlier out of my pocket and picking at the sharp edges with idle, fevered fingers.

Mr. Faraize stuck his neck out and made eye contact with me, holding out a finger to point in my direction. I instinctively looked behind my shoulder before back to him...was he pointing to me? I poked my chest, raising an eyebrow to match his body language and he nodded his head, motioning me to come.

It was an awkward walk to the front of the line. Had I done something wrong?

"Lysander came and asked me personally to let you straight in...do you have your ticket?" He smiled and stuck out his hand. I felt a twinge of guilt for the people waiting in line but the rest of me was starstruck by Lysander's gesture. Handing Mr. Faraize my ticket and trying my best not to make eye contact with any of the especially impatient students I squeezed past him and through the doors to the auditorium.

The voices were booming; _everyone_ was here and packed into the standing area behind the seats. It was thrilling to see how many people had showed up to see Despite Chaos; I was _so_ proud to be here supporting Lysander. To think, _my _Lysander was the one that everyone was here to see...a part of me couldn't believe it, but then again I understood exactly why everyone loved him.

Everyone was screaming, loud voices trying to out-shout the louder voices. It was a chain reaction that made me appreciate my decision to keep my mind locked up from the inside and out, otherwise I'd be promising myself a pounding headache.

The concession stand is where I knew I'd find Brooke and Melody and it was set up at the back of the auditorium but the line was ridiculously long and growing; I didn't feel brave enough for that conquest quite yet. Instead, I figured I'd float around until I bumped into someone else I knew.

_'It's packed in here! Can't wait to see you. :)' _I took to texting Lysander after surveying my surroundings without so much as one familiar face in sight.

_'I wish you could come back stage with me. I'm missing you. We're wrapping up practice now and then it's off to the dressing room to get ready. You'll be the only one I see tonight from the stage, just like last show. ;)' _Lysander's reply was surprisingly fast considering how busy I knew he was.

As my fingers floated across the keys to type out another reply I felt a light tapping on my shoulder and my skin jumped with the surprise of thoughts I didn't hear coming. Snapping neck to look back and turning my body I was met with the toothy grins of Leigh and Rosalya.

Leigh cupped his hands around his mouth, "Hi Luna!" He yelled, a little overzealous in his volume.

Rosalya rolled her eyes and pulled me in for a welcoming hug. "Thank God we found you. It was getting awkward..." She quietly whispered into my ear before pulling away and I couldn't help but to chuckle as I remembered what Lysander had said about their past.

Leigh grabbed my shoulders, pulling me in for a friendly embrace. "Good you see you, Leigh!" I chirped once in earshot over the many voices surrounding us. He pulled away and kept his hands on my shoulders with vigor in his gallant eyes.

"You too, Luna! Nice jacket!" He winked with a debonair smile.

"Thank you, it was made by a very talented designer!" I gushed, watching Leigh's cheeks go up in flames.

"Takes one to know one..."

"So, what're you and Lysander doing tomorrow for his special day?" Rosalya cut in, cocking her head to the side with wonder. My face twisted into a puzzled look of pure despair and I bit my knuckle, my forehead wrinkling with confusion. We were supposed to spend the day together tomorrow, but what was she talking about...Lysander's _special_ day?

Leigh's eyebrows spiked when he saw my crestfallen confusion and he smacked the palm of his hand to his forehead with a sigh. "Don't tell me he didn't mention that tomorrow's _his birthday_...typical Lysander_._ He never wants anyone to recognize his birthday; he hates the attention. He probably didn't want you to feel like you had to get him anything."

My eyes were wide, my heart heavy and sinking into the pit of my stomach. His_ birthday_ was tomorrow? Why hadn't I known his birthday in the first place? I had felt like I knew everything about him...childhood memories and embarrassing stories...his favorite foods, colors, and literature. I knew his parents' names and of his borderline Obsessive Compulsive Disorder...I knew his deepest darkest secret- that he was a telepath, but I didn't know his birthday? I guess it was just something we never discussed.

All at once any jubilation I had been feeling metamorphosized into a knotting sickness in the pit of my stomach...like I should've known; like it was my responsibility to have known.

"Really, Luna...don't feel bad. I'm pretty sure Castiel went years without knowing his birthday. He's never had a girlfriend before and our parents hardly come to visit so it's always been just another day for him. I get him a cake every year and usually Castiel swings by and we embarrass him by singing and giving him presents, but he absolutely hates every second of it."

I felt like I could pass out. Blinking away the itchiness of my burning eyes, I focused my eye to a button on Leigh's coat to quell my emotions.

I guess I was kind of the same way; it never occurred to me to tell Lysander my birthday because the only one who ever cared was father. I didn't even really care about my birthday, which wasn't even until June, anyway. Lysander was a whole seven months older than me...hmm.

A part of me wanted to say something to him about it the moment I saw him. I wasn't mad at him, because I did understand why he wouldn't want the attention. Lysander was not a material person; in fact, he was the furthest thing from it. He liked to give, but not to receive. Maybe it's because it made him feel weak to receive anything at all.

Growing up with everyone's thoughts and personalities in my head I'd come to realize that there were different types of people in this world. Lysander was a provider, someone who'd give anything for the people that he loved and expect nothing in return and I could admire that, just like I admired everything about him with all of my heart. I did want him to know that I knew and acknowledged his birthday, though, because it truly was a special day. Not only for him, but for me, too. I simply couldn't let it go unrecognized.

As Rosalya and Leigh made small talk I chewed on ideas for a while and finally came up with the perfect way to let him in on the fact that I knew. It was my newest goal to give him the best birthday he'd ever have.

Leigh's jabbering died down and when I looked up his eyes were glued to his phone while Rosalya's wandered off to a tall green-eyed brunette in camouflage standing at the wall. She bit her lip and looked over at me as I studied her, leaning in and parting her perfectly-glossed lips.

"I'm gonna go talk to Kentin...he looks lonely." Her nose wiggled as she laughed and I pretended to know who she was talking about while she gave me a wink before trotting off, the clicking of her heels disappearing into the sounds of the crowd.

A dry itch crept up from the back of my throat and I looked to see that although the line to the concession stand was still long, the number of people had reduced quite significantly. "Do you need a drink, Leigh? I was going to go and get something."

Leigh glanced up from his phone, his eyes wandering around as he processed what I had said. "Hmm. No, I think I'll be okay, thanks. I'm gonna go sit and play some Tetris on my phone. I'll see you at our seats?"

"Yeah, I'll be right there!"

Brooke and Melody were quick and diligent behind the concession stand, trying to whittle the long line down as promptly as they could by working in assembly. Melody sat at the counter taking money, stuffing it into a cash box and making change while Brooke took the orders and pulled out cold, dripping bottles of orange soda from the cooler, handing them to the waiting students. The line was long, but I didn't have much else to do until the show started and I didn't mind waiting.

Voices were still all around me and even with my mind tuned out tight from their thoughts I could still feel a gripping headache coming on strong. As I stood patiently in line twiddling my thumbs, my eyes kept low, studying all of the different types of shoes that passed by I couldn't help myself from eavesdropping on the conversations around me...literately; there was no other option unless earplugs were available.

"I can't wait for the music to start; I've heard that the band is really talented!"

"Are you coming to Charlotte's party tonight?"

"Did you talk to Dajan about it? He said you could come, too!"

"She's so fake, look at her trying to pull it off like I do!"

"Cute dress!"

"Are you wearing contacts?"

"How do you know it's _really Lysander's notebook?_"

"Yeah, and how'd you get it in the first place?"

My neck instantly snapped, perking up as soon as I heard Lysander's name. My attention was officially piqued and I squinted my eyes, scanning the crowd and listening as closely as I could..._Lysander's notebook was here, and in the wrong hands._

"I found it in the lost and found at the high school! I walk there every Monday morning to check for Lysander-related relics before school and couldn't believe my luck! See, it's got his name right here inside the cover! It's full of all his secret songs, poems, and writings!"

_**Nina...**_

_Of course!_

I zeroed in my sights on her. She stood surrounded by a group of other short, lanky middle school girls, clutching Lysander's notebook in her pale arms with an accomplished smile, leafing through to show off _his_ private entries. Protective mode set in and I was pushing through the crowd in an instant to get to her. She never saw me coming and when I finally squeezed my way to her I held my hand out, looking her straight in the eyes as she peered up at me.

"Excuse me, but if I could please have Lysander's notebook; I'll make sure it gets to him and he'll certainly appreciate that you found it." I tried to be polite but I was stressing through clenched teeth. _How dare she?_

"_You again..." _She hissed, her eyes going wide and almost glowing with rage as she sized me up, her entire face twisting into a horrible snarl.

"Please...the notebook." I repeated, my eyes shifting around the entire room. She clutched the notebook even closer to her chest, tangled eye contact burning through my skull.

"What business do_ you _have with the notebook? Lysander is _ours _and we wouldn't let a freak like you join our fan club even if you begged us!"

I pressed my straight face as hard as I could, knowing that I needed to pick and chose my words.

"I'm not asking to join the fan club, I'm asking for the notebook. Lysander has been distraught without it and really needs it back; what kind of fan would you be if you kept it from him?" I gave her a smile, trying my best to seem sweet. Apparently though, Nina wasn't a fan of smiling.

"I'll take it to him myself, then. Where is he?"

"He's in the dressing room right now. I'm on my way to see him, just please give me the notebook. I'm not going to argue with you about it anymore." I reached to take the notebook only to be encircled by the 'fan club' of girls.

"You're going to the dressing room to see him? What gives you the right to barge in on him like that? Who do you think you are, his girlfriend or something?" Another girl spat at me as Nina only grew scarier and scarier, her entire body shaking and her eyes twitching.

"I...I am, actually." I timidly admitted, hoping they'd respect it and leave it at that.

Instead, they exchanged angry glances, circling in closer. Nina cracked her knuckles. "Well girls...this unfortunate pest seems to think that _she's_ Lysander's girlfriend. Isn't that funny?" She laughed, manic and insane. "Everyone knows that Lysander doesn't date freaks!"

While she laughed with her friends, I swallowed every ounce of doubt in my mind and leaned in, snatching the notebook right from her frail grasp and backing out from the circle. Nina looked up, blood vessels popping in her eyes as she gawked down at her bare hands. Maybe that was the wrong approach...

"**GET HER!"**

When I envisioned my Senior year I never would've added being chased by my boyfriend's fan club on that list of things to do. I bobbed and weaved through the groups of floating students as Nina and her minions split up, trying to cut me off and corner me. Ducking, jumping and sprinting over and past each and every obstacle I had no idea what I was doing and set the stairs leading to the backstage door in my sights.

Climbing the first step, I tripped and fell hard, catching myself with my hands. Nina came up from behind me and grabbed onto my boot. I slipped my foot from the loose suede and crawled up the stairs, regaining my balance and throwing myself through the door. Hobbling down the carpeted hallways with only one shoe I knew I didn't have a lot of time and broke into an uneven trot down the hallway. The door slammed, frantic footsteps flooding the hallways as I turned a corner.

Throwing myself through the first door I saw I was slamming it shut and turning the lock, resting my sweating, heaving head on the frame. I tried desperately to draw air into my lungs, listening through the door at Nina and her friends screaming out for me in the hallway.

_'Luna!?'_

Lysander?!

Whipping around all at once I watched as Lysander buttoned his pants, his entire torso naked and shirtless and beautiful and my eyes were glued to his chiseled abdominal region. _Wait, what am I doing?_ I gasped, slapping a hand over my eyes, completely flustered and humiliated for walking in on him while he was changing.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to barge in on you...they were chasing me!"

The vibrations from Lysander's footsteps sent shivers down my spine and I soon felt his soft, warm hands on mine, lowering them. _'Luna...don't close your eyes unless you want to.' _He thought with a crinkly snicker. My cheeks were swollen, aflame with fierce blush as my eyes dipped down to his bare stomach again before right back to his beautiful eyes.

"Who's chasing you, sweet girl?" He wrapped me in his arms and kissed my forehead. His warm, bare skin made me crawl with feelings I couldn't explain. I soon completely forgot the answer to his question.

"Um..." I coughed, holding up his notebook suddenly. Lysander's eyes widened and he carefully took the book from my hands.

"W-where'd you find it?!" He was thrilled, flipping through the familiar pages with a smile.

"Nina had it...she and the rest of your fan club wouldn't give it to me so I took it. They hunted me and took my boot as collateral, I'm guessing. " I glanced down, my eyes following Lysander's long, willowy body down to my bare white-socked foot. Lysander peered down and then back up, pulling me in for another intoxicating hug. I wrapped my arms around him and my fingers brushed against his bare biceps. They were surprisingly hard and muscular and their firmness was alluring as they held me tight.

"I'll get your boot back for you; promise." He snickered, kissing my cheek in a warm, appreciative gesture. His beauty was derailing. "Thank you for getting my notebook back for me, you have no idea how much that means to me. I don't know what I would've done if they'd hurt you, though. I'll have a talk with them before the show." I couldn't help but to lean in and kiss him on the last word.

_'It was worth it...' _I giggled on his lips, patting the notebook in his hand.

"Nothing is worth risking your safety, Luna. Please remember that." He rested his forehead against mine and stared through to my mind._ 'I love you so much...' _With that thought he held his hands out to my pea coat, fondly caressing the buttons on the front before starting to undo them. My breathing hitched with an unfamiliar sensation and when he read my confusion he looked up with a giggle. _'...Just wanted to see the shirt that Brooke made you in all its glory; it's nice.' _He couldn't stop chuckling, admiring his name across my chest with a crooked smile.

My giggly smile landed on his lips...again. _'I'm glad you like it! Brooke did a good job.'_

_'Yes, I agree. And now you've got my name on you. You're all mine, and everyone knows it.' _He smirked, flecks of twinkling mischief dancing in his eyes.

_'I'm proud to wear it. I'm so proud to be all yours.' _He kissed me once more before backing up, turning around and...

_**Oh. My. God...wh-what is that?!**_

Gasping and gaping, I rubbed at my eyes as they bulged out of my head, imbibing the most beautiful piece of art they'd ever seen..._etched onto Lysander's back_.

_Wings. Big, beautiful, intricate wings..._

From the center of his back sprang the colorless sketch of feathers, each one flawless as they together formed a magnificent tapestry that held the entire silhouette together. Tucked neatly among the feathers were the wings of a dragonfly, a butterfly, and the unmistakable tail of a peacock hanging further than the rest. Balanced, symmetrical and untarnished, it all came together as the most incredible emblem on the perfect canvas and I marveled at the love I felt for it all at once.

Lysander listened in on my loud, drooling thoughts and turned his head, his face as pink as his tattoo was beautiful. _'You like it?'_

Thoughtlessly, I took uneven steps towards him and put my finger to the ink, tracing each line with a delicate, appreciative touch. It was beyond words, and I tossed my head as I deeply admired the precision of the artwork, running my fingers across his smooth skin and over the hard, toned muscles of his back as he stood and allowed me to explore him. Flawless...he was flawless. _'It's beautiful...I love everything about this.'_

_'Thank you. You know, sometimes I forget that it's even back there.' _He laughed, standing still and glancing over his shoulder as I continued to trace the lines over and over.

_'Did it hurt?' _I peered up at him, tucking my loosened hair behind my ear.

_'Honestly? Like Hell.'_ His entire face laughed with radiant sincerity.

I didn't want him to cover it up with a shirt but there was another part of me that never wanted anyone else to see it; like I just wanted to keep it all to myself. I knew that Lysander wasn't the type to show anything off, including something so worthy of everyone's attention and I felt special- like one of the members of an elite club.

"Leigh was there with me when I got it, so he was the first to see it. I showed Castiel and was kind of forced to let Brooke and Rosalya see. You're the fifth person to see it...and the first to touch it."

My face burst into flames, my smile stretching well beyond my ears. "Now you've got me wanting one."

Lysander giggled, marveling at my boldness. "It's not that a pair of angel wings wouldn't be perfectly fitting on your back but I'd hate to see you in any pain at all. It's like a cat scratch over and over on a sunburn. Plus, I'm almost certain your father would have a conniption if he ever found a tattoo on you. In fact, it's probably best he doesn't ever know about mine, either. He doesn't strike me as the type to appreciate tattoos."

I had to wordlessly agree, and standing on my tip-toes to deliver a kiss to his lips with a giggle I couldn't help but to notice that my balance was off.

_'You poor, shoeless girl. I cannot believe that Nina took your boot. She's really crossed the line this time...' _Lysander grabbed for a beige collared button-up dress shirt, pulling it over his shoulders and quickly doing up each button. Throwing on a brown vest over it and fixing a long, thick string into a bow tie around his neck he took my hand and lead me to the door.

_'I'm a little nervous of how they're going to react to seeing us together. They had malicious intentions for if they caught me. I think I heard Nina thinking about taking the scissors in her back pocket to my hair...I certainly wouldn't put it past her to keep scissors on her person at all times, either.'_

Lysander shook his head, his wispy, feathered asymmetrical bangs moving in slow motion around his face. _'I won't ever let anyone hurt you. That's a promise.' _

As we turned the corner Lysander's hand only tightened over mine when we spotted them. My boot dangled from Nina's hand as she stood, gabbing on with her friends in a corner of the hallway. One of the girls looked up and pointed in our direction and like dominoes they all turned their heads to get a look. Nina's expression was bizarre. She seemed ecstatic to see Lysander and as angry as a bull when her eyes trickled down to our clasped hands. Lysander held up an olive branch, waving his hand with a smile to the girls.

"Hello girls!" He called out, trying his best to keep things civil. I couldn't help but to let my cowardice get the best of me and stayed glued to his side as we approached the group.

"Ly-Lysander!" Nina coughed up, straightening her body, her eyes twitching as they stayed on our hands. She began chomping her nails nervously.

"Nina, I believe that boot in your hand belongs to Luna here. May I please have it back?" Lysander outstretched a hand while Nina seemed to contemplate her options. She looked to his hand, to the boot, and to my shoeless foot before shifting her eyes back to Lysander.

"She...she stole from us, Lysander. That girl is a criminal!" She spat, pulling the boot to her chest and pointing a finger at me.

"What exactly did she steal from you?" Lysander tried not to smirk, giving Nina the chance to explain what we both knew she couldn't.

"Um...well, it's complicated." She started.

"She stole your notebook!" A raven-haired girl behind her shouted. Nina clenched her teeth and shot daggers at her friend.

"My notebook, oh yes. I almost forgot to thank you for finding it, Nina. Luna was kind enough to return it to me. I think this whole thing is just a big misunderstanding. Luna wouldn't ever intentionally take anything that didn't belong to her." Lysander was playing his cards right, keeping his cool even though Nina was trying her best not to cooperate.

She snarled at me, narrowing her eyes as I nervously attempted to smooth my hair. "She snatched it right from me! I was going to return it to you after the show! She just wanted all the glory...she's nothing but a scheming black-eyed bitch, Lysander!"

_Black-eyed bitch? _I bit down on my lip. It was _such _a ridiculous insult...so why was I so sensitive?

"Nina, that's quite enough! I don't want to hear one more condescending word towards Luna. If you want my respect you're going to have to respect Luna. She is my girlfriend now." Lysander wore a shining halo around his head and I looked up to him with stars in my eyes. He was my savior.

"_Your girlfriend_? B-but Lysander! You're too good for her! Can't you see that _we're_ the ones for you? She's nothing but an...an ugly pig!"

Lysander dropped my hand at that comment and stepped forward, closer to Nina. I could hear his bated breaths. I could feel his skin growing hot and watched as his eyes started to glow again, just like they had in the confrontation with Amber.

"S-she's not your type at all!"

Lysander kept walking towards her, his fists clenched tight.

"She has creepy black eyes!"

"Yeah, and she's so gangly...look at her!"

"She doesn't even dress the way Lysander likes!"

"And look at those moles beneath her eyes...so weird!" The other girls started to pipe in while I took steps away watching Lysander grow angrier and angrier.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" It was the loudest I'd ever heard Lysander's voice. The girls all backed up into the wall with wide, quivering eyes.

_'Lysander, they're just a bunch of kids. They're not worth your anger...'_ I tried to calm him, seeing as stream was practically rolling off his body. He didn't reply, though. Instead he just stood there, locking his eyes on Nina's, who soon looked completely devoured in his eye contact. I tried to dip into Lysander's mind to try to get inside his head and calm him down..._but it was blocked __**again. **__W-what was going on?_

"Give me Luna's boot, now." He held out his hand, into which Nina placed the boot almost immediately.

"Now listen to me..." The four girls heads snapped to the attention of Lysander, each one of them paying great attention, staring straight into his eyes. "All of you need to grow up and start acting like young ladies. You've better things to do than follow someone like me around who is never going to requite your feelings. I appreciate the support, but you've crossed a line tonight by bringing Luna into this and I will not tolerate such distasteful behavior. I've no choice but to ask you all to leave and to think about making some adjustments to your attitudes before coming back to any of my shows. I think you owe Luna an apology, as well."

"I'm sorry, Luna."

"Yes, I apologize."

"Sorry, Luna."

"We're sorry."

I gaped at what was happening in front of me, squirming uncomfortably as the girls turned and like a line of ducklings marched straight for the emergency exit door without so much as a second glance. Their eyes stayed fixed on the door until each of them slid out and into the night. As Lysander stood there, his shoulder bones contracting with every breath I just watched him.

No...this wasn't Bipolar Disorder at all, and maybe I had known that all along.

Lysander was slow to turn around but when he did, he looked especially pale, his skin flushed as if he'd seen a ghost. His eyes were wide and jerking, red and irritated.

_'Luna...wh-what am I? What am I doing to people?' _He cradled his heavy head in his hands, his knees buckling as he crouched down into a ball. I went to him, throwing my arms around his body as I felt him break into a cold sweat. My hands moved in circles at the small of his back and I rested my head on his shoulder.

_'I don't know, Lysander...I don't know.' _

His neck snapped to look at me, pain and confusion in his eyes. _'I know now that I did that with my mind. I pushed my commands into their heads and they took them but I swear I didn't mean to. I just lost control of my anger. I've never been an angry person. Nothing has ever made me as angry as I've felt when someone hurts you, Luna. I was just trying to protect you...I didn't want this. I never meant to do this."_

I gathered his sweating hands in mine and pulled him up from his knees. He looked into my eyes helplessly, as if he was putting all of his faith in me and my heart broke over and over again. _'I know what kind of person you are, Lysander. You are kind, and you have so much love in your heart. You're perfect just the way you are and we'll figure this thing out together. Don't you give it another thought. Yes, you can do something that I can't, but now that we've recognized it we can find a way to control it. I promise you, we'll figure this out.' _

_'But Luna...'_

I tightened my fingers in his hair, resting my forehead against his and shushing him. '_All I want you to worry about is going out there and singing your heart out. Will you do that for me?'_

_'Yes. Yes, I'll do that for you. I'd do anything for you, Luna.' _


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Chapter Nineteen: Happy Birthday**

* * *

After finally weaseling my way through the crowd, I managed to locate my friends and was happy to find that Brooke and Melody had saved a spot for me right in between them- front row, center seat.

"Where have you been?" Brooke turned to ask with a smile, handing me a cold Sprite that I popped open and gulped in an instant, finally quenching a powerful thirst.

"Thanks!" I breathed before answering her question, "in the back with Lysander..." I drew in air as I gasped after a long sip.

Brooke's eyebrows arched, and she leaned in to hear more. "In the dressing room, huh?" Rosalya and Melody's attentions had been captured, and they too listened carefully.

"Yeah. He showed me his tattoo! I didn't even know he had one."

"Oh _really_? What else did he show you?" Rosalya obviously couldn't hold her tongue. My cheeks were burning red and I shook my hands at them.

"No, no, not like that!"

"Lysander has a tattoo? I didn't know that!" Melody thankfully turned the attention away from me for a moment, allowing me to regain some composure.

"Yes, it's beautiful; a pair of wings on his back..." I found myself daydreaming about the image of a shirtless Lysander again and had to force myself to snap out of it.

The lights soon died down, most everyone, including us, stood and cheered in the darkness, knowing what it meant. When the blinding stage lights came back on, the curtain drew, all at once revealing Castiel who stood stage left with his signature red guitar in his arms and Nathaniel to the back and center behind the drum set. I hardly paid any mind to them at all though, because my eyes were fixed directly on front and center stage.

Lysander stood holding the microphone, his head down but his glowing eyes peeking out at me from under his fallen hair. In the blink of an eye, the hiss of the guitar and the beating of the drums filled my ears and Lysander ripped the microphone from the stand. Holding it to his mouth, he made my heart swell and burst as his incredible voice rang throughout the entire auditorium. His eyes hardly ever left me as he sang except to turn in circles, pace the stage, and move with the music to entertain the crowd. I was in awe of him. He seemed so playful and carefree despite what had happened not ten minutes earlier with Nina and I admired him with all my heart. The tension between us as he sang while I watched him was on fire.

After playing a few original songs that echoed over again in my head, the lyrics so flawlessly written by Lysander burnt into my memory forever, he cleared his throat before taking the microphone once more.

"This next song is a cover that really brings to life what I'm going through right now. I just hope we do it justice." He stepped back, the lights dimming a bit as Castiel began to play soft, fast chords over and over, almost resembling the strike of a piano key. Nathaniel just barely tapped the base of his drum, setting a beat as Lysander began to sing.

"_Heart beats fast, colors and promises, how to be brave, how can I love when I'm afraid to fall? But watching you stand alone all of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow...one step closer." _

Lysander's eyes never left mine as he sang softly, his voice and the words crawling through my ears and down to my heart where they stayed perched in my soul.

"_I have died everyday waiting for you. Darling don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years. I'll love you for a thousand more." _

I wanted to cry, and tried my best to watch his lips move and hold the words in my arms without dropping so much as one letter.

"_-And all along I believed I would find you. Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years; I'll love you for a thousand more." _

Every word he uttered was us. I planted my feet firmly on the ground with the fear that I very well could float away or clamber up onto the stage all at once to him. He was singing _to me _in front of a hundred people but I truly believed as though in that moment Lysander and I were the only two people in the world. As his voice hummed the last word to the beautiful song and the crowd erupted into wild cheers and thundering applause Lysander's eyes never left mine. _'You are a miracle, Luna. I love you.'_

When Despite Chaos' set ended, Lysander thanked the entire audience, drawing out another mumbled thank you under his breath when his eyes fell on me once more, and all at once the curtain was closed and the show was over. I was the first to lunge forward, but Brooke pulled me back by my jacket.

"C'mon, this way will be quicker!" She expressed, leading us to the stage and climbing right up.

We all followed suit, clambering onto the stage behind her. As soon as I was to my feet I quickly jogged to the curtain and ducked through the heavy velvet. Backstage was dark and once Brooke and the rest followed behind through the curtain Melody pulled out her phone, lighting the area and leading us to the door that spit us out into to the same hallway that Lysander and I had been in just an hour earlier. I somehow got lost in transition, the last one to hurl myself through the door and instantly I was in Lysander's arms. When I realized that he was all around me I threw my arms around his neck and planted my lips on his with a smack. _'You were so incredible!'_

He kissed me back, matching my vigor as his fingers tightened in my hair. _'As were you, my love.'_

I pulled back, skewing my mouth to the side and cocking my head. _'I didn't do anything but stand and watch you!'_

_'Yes, but you're the very best watcher. Your big, bright, beautiful eyes and contagious smile kept me in check the entire time.'_

I nuzzled my head into the crook of his neck, breathing him in. Even his _sweat _was intoxicating and I could've fallen fast asleep with content in his arms if Brooke's shouting hadn't snapped me back to reality.

"Hey you two! We're going to have some drinks at Castiel's place if you guys want to come!"

"Sounds great, Brooke; but today is Luna and I's one week anniversary and we've got plans. Maybe next time."

"Aw, I didn't even realize! Happy anniversary!"

"Yeah guys, don't get too crazy tonight!" Castiel interrupted with a wink. "Have a great day tomorrow, buddy."

"Just another day..." Lysander said under his breath, his voice blowing the hair from his face.

No, it wasn't just another day. He'd realize that later, though.

The air was thick with a fast approaching winter, and my cold fingers fastened the buttons on my coat as Lysander's clicked at his car to unlock it. He trotted ahead of me to chivalrously open the passenger's side door and I slide in, completely unaware of where we were going next. Once Lysander was by my side in the driver's seat he turned to me with a heart-stopping smile, reaching for my red, wind-chapped hands.

"I'll get you some mittens for tomorrow," he hummed, leaning in to turn on the interior lights in the car.

I tried to shove my but-tomorrow-isn't-my-birthday thoughts to the back of my mind where he hopefully couldn't find them. "I can knit some tonight. Save yourself the trouble!"

"It's no trouble. In the meantime though..." He leaned over my lap and popped the glove box open, ironically producing a pair of thin, grey cotton gloves. He took my hands delicately in his and began to pull the soft cotton over my fingers.

"Th-thank you..." I gushed, looking down at the slightly-too-big gloves that instantly warmed my hands.

"Anything for you. Now, where would you like to go? There's a Thai restaurant in town that serves delicious sushi, or Primavera's! You like Italian, right? Or if you're feeling something more low-key there's an iHop in the next town over..."

I chewed my lip, trying to picture myself eating and looking behind my shoulder instead, subconsciously motioning to what I was actually hungry for. Lysander observed my thoughts and tilted his head, bringing his hands to my face with a lopsided look of sincerity. "Whatever you'd like, my love."

"It all sounds great... What are you hungry for?" I asked him, knowing that I couldn't make a choice without an appetite.

"Hmm, is _'you' _an answer?" He winked, his lips twitching with the hint of a mischievous smile.

I couldn't help but to giggle as I glanced over my shoulder again to the field behind the garden. Lysander looked as well, and I sighed, turning to him. 'If your heart is set on dinner than I'm perfectly content with doing that...but a part of me wants to go..."

"-To the place it all started?" He finished my sentence, his expression warm and appreciative.

I smiled a wordless 'yes', and with that Lysander was stumbling to undo his seat belt and opening my door. I fixed my hand into his as he pulled me from my seat and while everyone around us was busy piling into their cars we slipped away, breaking into a steady sprint towards our world all at once.

The air was cold and the forest was dark, but with my hand in Lysander's I was completely comfortable and managed to step over every branch and log with effortless precision. When we finally came to our field it was like looking down from the very top of the world. Amoris twinkled on the horizon, the cool, bright moon etching a sparkling silver path across the glowing green grass.

Our imprints in the grass were still barely visible from the last time we'd sat tangled up in each other. We took our spots and picked up from where we left off, looking up to the stars instead of the clouds.

"Luna...I don't want to ignore what happened earlier." Lysander sighed once we settled in the cool blades. I could feel his heart drop into the pit of his stomach as he all at once remembered.

"I know. I don't either."

"Do I scare you?" He tilted his head even though he already knew the answer. Maybe it would help him to feel better if he heard it in words, though.

"No. You never could. Why would you think that?"

"Because I scare myself..." His eyes trickled down to his feet and I reached out, lifting his chin with just a finger.

"I promise I'll come up with something. We can control this, especially now that we know what it does and how it's triggered. It's obvious that anger is a trigger. We just need to identify what makes you angry and come up with ways to avoid it."

"I'm not an angry person, Luna...but I am protective; so protective that any negativity projected towards you sets me off like a land mine."

"Next time a situation arises where you get angry enough to lose control, acknowledge your abilities. Think them through...I think letting your subconscious ability know that you're well aware of its presence will be enough to control it."

Lysander wordlessly affirmed and I curled up with him, letting him snake his arms around me and pull me closer as we looked up to the sky. I sent him calming thoughts, trying my best to get his mind off of the 'Nina Incident'. It didn't matter to me anymore and I wanted him to know that.

"Who says you can't hold the moon in your hands?" Lysander laughed, almost to himself. I nuzzled my head on his chest, looking up at him with a wondering smile. "I stand by what I said when I first met you. Your name is ever so fitting. Just like the moon, there is only one you. One beautiful Luna that lights my darkness. You're my beautiful moon. My Lunabelle."

I bit my lip, my smile wild and working every last muscle in my face. "That must make you the sun, then. You light up my entire world, Lysander."

"But the sun and the moon can never be together..."

"Yes they can. You know how when the sun is setting and the moon is rising everything is just golden in the sky? Everything is just perfect, if only for a moment. Compared to how long the rest of the world will go on even after we die we've only got just a moment to shine together, but it'll surely be the most beautiful moment, just like when the sun and the moon meet each evening."

Lysander leaned down to kiss me all at once and when I closed my eyes all I saw was that golden moment. I'm not sure how long we kissed but it must have been quite a while. Between our kisses and counting stars to make constellations of our very own the time slipped away from us. I was especially alert of the time and when it started leaning closer to the end of our night we found ourselves reluctantly hiking through the woods once again, the stars leading us to the parking lot where Lysander's car sat faithfully waiting.

"So, tomorrow; is there anything special you'd like to do?"

I bit my lip, a twinkle in my eyes. "Anything we do will be special...why don't _you _tell me what _you'd_ like to do tomorrow?"

"Just as long as it involves you and no one else I'll be happy." He squeezed my hand, opening the car door and letting me climb in. I didn't want to go home but there was just one more thing that I looked forward, and the night wasn't over yet.

Lysander barely pressed his foot to the pedal and we creeped down the road. My eyes stayed glued to the interior clock. 11:52...

"I'm happy that your father decided to let you stay out later tonight...I do find myself wishing we were older though. I dream of someday waking up with your head on my chest." Lysander admitted, his eyes focused on the road while his mind was focused on me. I pushed any thought of his birthday as far back as possible, overlapping every other thought in my mind and blanketing it with plenty of giddy thoughts to spare.

"Someday I hope that will be every morning..." I cooed. 11:53. The clock was moving slowly on purpose, taunting and teasing. "Can we drive through the neighborhood? I'm not ready to go home just yet..."

"Perfect, because I'm not ready to let you, Lunabelle." Lysander glanced to me with a wink, accelerating right past my house. A part of me wished he'd just keep going.

Our lap through the neighborhood was much too quick and as we exchanged endearing thoughts my eyes never left the clock for more than a minute at a time. When we found ourselves in my driveway at last my heart started pumping, its beat loud and erratic. 11:59.

"Can I pick you up at ten tomorrow?" He leaned in as he pulled the car into neutral.

"Not a minute later! Or sooner...my father is all about punctuality." I moved my face closer to his, my eyes on the clock, counting down the seconds in the back of my mind where I hoped Lysander couldn't hear.

10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1

12:00

Pushing my lips against his and pulling him in, he seemed a little surprised by my sudden urgency.

_'Happy birthday, Lysander. I love you so much.'_

* * *

**A/N: Moaaar fluffies! :D And more to come, soon!**

**If you're getting tired of how fluffy and cute everything is, don't worry! It won't be for long! Muahahahaha!**

**Thanks SO much for all of your amazing reviews! I love you guys! XOXO**

**The songs I used just a few lines from is A Thousand Years by Christina Perri. I feel like it's totally Lysuna's song!**


	21. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty: Sparkle**

* * *

**Three Weeks Later**

* * *

"I spy...something gray!'"

"Gray? My hair!"

"Your hair isn't gray! It's silver, I'd say."

"Silver, hm?" Lysander pulled a long strand of his hair into eyesight and studied it for a moment with a chuckle. "Silver it is, Lunabelle. Now, something gray..." He rolled his body up, sitting and turning his head to take in our surroundings with narrowed eyes. I stayed outstretched in the grass, giggling as I kept my eyes on the large gray boulder in the middle of our world.

"Oh!" He called, pointing up at a big, gray storm cloud. Was it about to rain? I hadn't even noticed. "The cloud?"

"Nope!" I shook my head, "think closer..."

I did my very best to block my thoughts from Lysander, otherwise he'd be able to find exactly what I spied. We found it incredibly amusing that we could play normal guessing games with each other, especially Lysander, since I was the only one ever capable of hiding my thoughts from him. He was apparently the champion at Guess Who, Twenty Questions, and Rock, Paper, Scissors. He never had to guess before, and he was giddy at the opportunity.

Lysander's eyes once again surveyed the land before finally falling on the boulder. He studied it, stroking his chin thoughtfully with long, pensive fingers before pointing to it with a shrug. "The rock?"

"Yes!" I awarded him by sitting up and clapping. He threw his hands into the air before they plunged around my waist, pulling me in for a giggly kiss.

It was our one-month anniversary, which thankfully fell on a sleepy Sunday. Appropriately, we were bundled up and romping in the field for the day.

Lysander had prepared me for my first cold December (despite my protests) with stylish scarves, long pants and cotton boot socks courtesy of Leigh, but it didn't seem as though snow was in the forecast any time soon. It was a disappointment to me, but everyone else in Amoris didn't seem to mind this winter's mildness.

Lost in thought, I found myself admiring Lysander for the millionth time that day. I loved to look at him. No matter how well I knew every detail of his face I could still study him for a lifetime. He was beautiful, and although from far away he seemed unrealistically perfect, up close and personal was where the little things that made him beautifully-human lived. Sometimes his chin was just slightly rough and rugged with the light, short stubble of facial hair that he'd never let grow past that length, and his silver eyebrows followed a smooth line, but looking extra close I'd noticed that just a few hairs strayed away from the direction of all the rest. He had not a blemish on his fair skin, but when he blushed he'd turn a hundred shades of different reds that lit him up like the sun. If only I could capture his beauty to hold in my hands forever..._like a picture._

I could truly look at him all day long, and as I gazed at him I realized in the month we'd been together we'd never taken so much as one picture together.

Without a second thought I dug through my pocket and pulled out my phone, holding it up to the light to try and find the perfect position. Lysander watched me closely, reading my intentions and putting his cheek to mine with a smile. I snapped ten pictures in less than a minute, turning to kiss him on the cheek, and then on the lips. He'd kiss my cheek, we'd make silly faces, and smile after smile I was collecting treasures to take home and keep forever. They'd certainly come in handy when I was alone in my room missing him tonight.

_'You look so effortlessly gorgeous in all of these, Lunabelle.'_ Lysander smiled as he flipped through the pictures we'd only just taken on my phone. After the last one of us he kept on going, coming to the last picture I took before we left California: my feet in the sand and my hand outstretched to a seagull, coaxing it into the frame with a piece of strawberry Poptart. Lysander's eyes smiled as he studied the photo._ 'Do seagulls even like Poptarts?' _

_'Of course they do! Seagulls will eat anything, I promise. They used to constantly try to steal my food, especially when they learned that I'd share with them.'_

He snickered, moving to the next picture of me at the top of a tall stone jetty in a short black sundress, looking down with a smile at father as he stood below in the sand taking the picture. Pictures of hermit crabs, my boots and other creations, of my painted walls back home and extremely embarrassing mirror-pictures of myself sparked memories that I was overjoyed to be sharing with Lysander as he engulfed each detail of every single picture.

_'Now it's your turn!' _ I teased, wondering what kind of pictures Lysander took with his phone.

He laughed, digging through his pockets. _'I don't even remember the last time I used the camera on this thing.' _

His gallery started with a picture of two big, beautiful and practically identical dogs. Sleek, black coats with fawn points, the only difference between the two was the size, and that one had a black spiked collar while the other wore a pink sequined harness. They both sat pretty for the camera and I smirked at their goofy, toothy grins.

"Angel and Demon...Brooke and Castiel's 'kids'. They're a lot of fun." Lysander laughed out loud.

"Oh, these are the dogs they're always talking so fondly about. They're adorable!"

The next picture was a little confusing. Lysander stood, a small plastic ball in hand, leaning slightly over a ping-pong table. There were six red solo cups below his chest on the table and his eyes narrowed as if he was focusing hard._ 'Oh boy...these pictures are from the last party Brooke and Castiel had. I'm the beer pong champion, and I can't even cheat!'_

_'Beer pong?' _I hadn't a clue what he was talking about.

_'It's a drinking game. I don't much like drinking, but when everyone else does it gets tedious always being the sober one. I hope to never be as inebriated as I was that night, though.'_

Lysander drunk...my imagination couldn't conjure up any imagery for that, but thankfully the next picture gave me a good idea. I couldn't help but to burst into laughter as I held the phone up closer to my eyes. Lysander was fully clothed and fast asleep on the ground, holding on tight to a big, pink unicorn pillow, a boozy smile scribbled across his face.

_'I didn't pin you as the sloppy-drunk-type...'_ I thought in between howling laughter. Lysander peeked over my shoulder and turned bright red as he shook his head, trying not to laugh.

"I fell asleep and Castiel planted that there, I swear! At least I wasn't rolling around on the basement floor like Castiel and Leigh! If anyone is a sloppy drunk, it's Leigh. That was the night that he sang 'Circle of Life' for everyone whilst standing on the bar..." Lysander pressed his finger to the phone and scrolled over to a picture of Leigh doing just that with a hairbrush in his hands and his mouth open. Lysander couldn't contain his giggles as he flashed the picture towards me.

_'Wait, you mean like, 'Circle of Life' from the Lion King?' _

_'The very same!' _ Tears welled up in the sides of Lysander's eyes as he brayed, and just the mere thought of Leigh attempting to drunkenly sing the introduction to that song made me lose it.

As we collapsed side by side I held my aching abdominal muscles and tried to catch my breath. Lysander's temple rattled against mine with laughter and I shut my eyes tight until I felt a cold, wet sensation on my cheek. A rain drop? I opened my eyes, Lysander's happy voice all around me and looking up, I was in a dream.

With the wide opaque-gray sky all around me I was breathless as I watched it flutter, pushing past the atmosphere like rain did; only it was whole and vivid, and fell in soft, radiant flickers. I slowly rose up once my laughter had turned to small gasps and held my hands out, letting the tender snowflakes tumble onto my woolen mitten. My eyes were wide and bright with fascination. Wonderstruck by the phenomenon I came to my feet and tilted my head towards the sky, watching the snow fall all around me. It was cold, wet, and melted on the tip of my nose. Had I always expected it to? I didn't really know what I'd anticipated, but either way this was so, so much better.

_'Hey, it's snowing!' _I heard Lysander's thoughts as he got up to join me. Once he read my marveling thoughts though, he gasped and came straight to me. _'Oh Luna...this is your first snow!'_

My mittens in an instant were covered with flecks of the fluffy alien entity. Suddenly I was a little girl again, discovering something amazing about the world for the very first time and I twirled a circle to watch the snowflakes dance along with me. Lysander laughed out, taking my hands in his with a warm grin. He opened his mouth and turned his head to the sky, catching the flakes on his tongue. My eyebrows arched as I gawked on, confused as I'd ever been of what exactly he was trying to do.

_'You...you can eat it?' _

Lysander fixed his eyes on me. _'It's only water; like catching rain drops!'_

Even though I'd learned about snow and precipitation a thousand times before I found it hard to believe that it was just water. It seemed more like magic. Tightening my eyelids, I turned my head towards the clouds, letting the snow melt on my tongue and drip down my throat as water.

When I looked over to Lysander I saw that he hid his grinning face behind his phone, snapping candid pictures of my wide-eyed wonder at the flurries around us. When I stopped to smile back, he caught another picture before shoving his phone back in his pocket and holding out his hands to catch the snow.

The grass was quickly blanketed in a thin layer of the glimmering diamond snowflakes and Lysander bent down to pick up a hand full, throwing it in the air around us. I spun in circles catching as many of the flakes as I could on my tongue and mittens, just enthralled by everything all around me. I giggled and danced through the flurries, shaking tree branches and watching it oscillate in all sorts of directions, picking up handfuls of snow and balling it up, throwing it at the tress to watch it crash.

Lysander mostly watched on, admiring my childish jubilation with a smile that reflected off of the crystal surface below. _'We should make snow angels!' _

I'd seen people make snow angels before on television and in movies, but I obviously had no idea how to make one of my own. _'Teach me?'_

He got down to his knees and I mirrored him as he laid back, spreading his arms and legs. _'Flap them up and down, like you're flying!' _

I don't know what was so funny, but as I waved my arms against the ground I couldn't stop giggling at the novel concept of everything. Simple things were much better when you were in love, and I truly believe that snow was definitely no exception. If I hadn't met Lysander I'd probably be staring outside my bedroom window watching my first snowfall from the house but instead I was experiencing with my whole heart and it was incredible.

With my back soaking as I laid in the imprint of my snow angel I suddenly felt an uncomfortable dripping sensation in my nose and sat up quickly. Was my nose bleeding? Fluid rushed out all at once and I held it with my mitten, sniffling so hard that I broke into a fit of exasperating coughs. Lysander perked up and came to my side, patting my back as I hacked up a lung. I'd never in my life felt so...runny.

_'Are you okay? What's the matter, Luna? Are you not feeling well?' _ Lysander's soft but pressing thoughts were laced with worry.

_'I'm fine...but my nose, is it bleeding?' _My gloves were made of red yarn, so even if my nose had been bleeding I wasn't able to tell. Lysander shook his head, wrapping an arm around me as he settled in the snow beside me.

_'Looks like you've got a runny nose. Come, lets get you back to the car before you catch a cold...' _

_'I'll be fine!' _I giggled, stifling my sniffles with my mittens once more and coughing into my forearm. _'Promise!'_

_'That cough doesn't sound good. We need to get you warmed up, my love.'_

I didn't want to leave, though. Leaving gave us nowhere else to go but home since practically everything in Amoris closed on Sunday. I wasn't ready yet. We still had three hours until I was expected home and there was no way I was going to waste that. Lysander pulled me up with outstretched arms and took my hands in his, the snow on our gloves crunching and meshing together between our embrace.

_'I won't take you home until seven, promise.' _Lysander ensured me as he lead me to the edge of the forest. Every fallen branch and twisted tree limb was covered in a soft blanket of snow that made all that was once dead and desolate sparkle and glow. He coaxed me into clambering onto his back halfway through he carried me the rest of the way, dusting off the thick blanket of snow that had piled onto the compact car as it waited for us in the empty parking lot of the school.

Lysander had pointed his house out to me in the past but I'd never even pulled into the driveway before. He parked his car on the snow covered asphalt and clicked a button velcroed to his visor. The garage door slowly crept open, revealing Leigh's spotless black Mustang. He unclasped his seat belt before taking his keys out of the ignition and shuffling out into the falling snow.

I was still mystified by it and getting out of the car I couldn't help but to gawk at our neighborhood's transformation. Everything was blindingly white and sparkling,; it was breathtaking. The Christmas lights that had been strung up along the block and around every tree in the last week or so were surreal, shining through a veil of white snow. The snow made _everything _sparkle with radiance.

Lysander's hand grasped my wet mitten and led me towards the garage while my heart leaped into my throat with excitement. I'd pictured the inside Lysander's house a thousand times in my head and couldn't wait to draw comparisons. We quickly darted through the garage and he opened the door, letting me slide in and following behind.

I was greeted with the warm, sophisticated smell of ginger and freshly laundered linen, similar to some of the many that made up Lysander's signature scent as soon as we entered his house, and the kitchen that we stood in was impressively neat for the kitchen of two young men. One-walled and spacious, an island sat in the middle with a quaint modern breakfast table to the side. As I took everything in I heard familiar thoughts approaching, followed by footsteps on the hardwood._ 'Lys must be home...'_

Lysander guided me past the island and a strangely-casual looking Leigh soon emerged from the hallway, smiling and waving when he saw me. He wore a long-sleeved black fleece shirt and beige hip-hugging pajama pants and came straight to me.

"Luna! Nice to see you!" He threw a lazy arm around my shoulders for a half-hug and nodded his head to his brother with a smile. "I was worried when I heard you come in. You're usually out much later on Luna-days."

"Today was her first experience with snow and she's a little sniffly. I don't want her to catch a cold, so I figured I'd bring her here and make her a hot cup of tea or something." Lysander explained.

Leigh took a seat at the table, pulling out a chair and offering it to me as Lysander began rummaging through the cabinets. "Take off your coat and stay awhile!" He pointed to a coat rack beside the table. I shimmied out of it, hung it up, and slid in beside Leigh at the table. "What do you think about the snow?"

"It's amazing. I love it!"

Leigh rested his head in his palm as he leaned in, forthcoming as ever. "It's a real pain once you get used to it but at least it makes everything look nice."

Meanwhile, my eyes were stuck on Lysander and I watched as he put a stainless steal tea kettle on the stove. _'What kind of tea do you prefer, Lunabelle?' _

_'Anything you have is fine, plain black tea...or green tea.' _

_'You like green tea?' _Lysander held up a box of just that with a smirk.

_'Love it, actually. It's my favorite.'_

_'Me too. I don't know why I continue to be surprised by our uncanny similarities. Do I even have to ask if you'd like honey or not?' _

_'What do you think?'_

Lysander poured some cough medicine into a tiny cup, handing me that to down with a steaming mug of tea and sat beside me as I nursed my runny nose.

"You guys are doing that creepy silent thing again. With the way you talk on the phone incessantly whenever you're apart I thought you'd be a little more talkative in person..."

"Scratchy throat." I shrugged with a smile, stirring the honey at the bottom of my piping tea cup and turning to wink at Lysander, who already wore a knowing smirk hidden from his unceasingly clueless brother.

The last warm sip of the tea slid down my throat and seemed to clear up most of the stuffiness. Blinking, I was already feeling ten times better, and Leigh poked my shoulder with a cocked eyebrow when he noticed that my teacup was empty. "Feeling better?"

I nodded my head with a smile. "Much! That really did the trick, Lysander." I turned to give him an affectionate expression.

"Good, because tea is so boring. Come see my room!" In one swift motion Leigh sprang to his feet and grabbed my hands, pulling me from my chair and to the living room, rushing for the staircase.

"Oh, okay!" I seemingly had no choice but to agree, but a part of me did want to see Leigh's clothing stash that Lysander had told me so much about. Lysander chuckled as he followed us up the stairs and I found myself wondering more than anything which room was his.

_'Mine is downstairs. We'll make our way there eventually.' _

Leigh led me to his bedroom door, pushing it open and ushering us in. Wide, roomy and a tad bit cluttered, the smell of spray starch, vanilla and cedarwood swirled together like they did most every time Leigh walked into a room. I found myself instantly drawn to the pictures and sketches of different outfits and styles that littered his walls. There was a king-sized bed in the middle of the room up against the wall, a wardrobe, mannequins, two ironing boards, and a desk with a large sewing machine beside a pair of double doors that I presumed lead to a closet of epic proportions.

"Wow Leigh, your room is great!" I gushed, studying the pictures on the walls and turning my head to take it all in. He smirked deviously and rushed to the closet.

"You haven't seen the best part, yet!"

_'Leigh just loves to show off...' _Lysander snickered behind me as I followed him inside the enormous walk-in closet, my eyes widening. I simply couldn't hold in a gasp as I peered at the hundreds upon hundreds of clothes that dressed Leigh's closet. It was quite possibly bigger than my bedroom. Rows and rows of colors, all different fabrics, textiles and materials lined the walls, an uncountable number of shoes below them.

I was speechless and took steps closer, running my fingers across each piece, amazed that Leigh had most likely made every article by hand.

_'Impressive, huh?'_ Lysander thought as he watched my astonishment.

_'I'd say!'_

"So, what do you think?" Leigh asked excitedly.

"Leigh, this is amazing! I know I shouldn't be surprised, but gosh..." I rubbed my fingers over the texture of coats and dresses.

"Oh, I just recently threw this together...it's so_ Luna._" Leigh mumbled to himself, driving his hand through the wall of cloth and plucking a hanger from the rack. My lips parted into a drooling jaw-drop as I gazed at the dress he held up.

Short, snug, and square, it was made with intricate lace overlapping a solid white base. The sleeves were elbow length and the low, round neckline was lined with a solid black collar that matched the thin belt underneath the bodice. I was intrigued by the piece, to say the least, and tiptoed to it grabbing a pinch of the material, my fingertips tickling under the coarse lace.

"This is beautiful..."

"_And_ it's yours!" Leigh dropped the dress in my arms and I instantly held it back out.

"Oh, no...I couldn't. You've given me quite enough already, Leigh. Sell this one. You deserve the profit from your hard work." I was flustered and just shook my head.

_'Luna, he enjoys dressing people. It's his thing!' _Lysander's thoughts whispered into my mind. It still didn't feel right, though. I was a stranger to taking gifts from anyone at all and it wasn't something I knew how to handle.

"This wouldn't look right on anyone but you...please take it? It's so you, Luna." Leigh whined once more. My cheeks were burning and I sighed, chewing my lip and drawing the dress to my chest.

"Thank you, Leigh. You're too kind; really."

"It's the least I can do for you, Luna. Lysander is the happiest I've ever seen him and it's all because of you! And there's more where that came from; don't forget it!"

Lysander pried the dress from my hands, offering to carry it for me like the gentleman he was, and I was feeling frazzled. I didn't like the attention, and tried desperately to find something that would redirect the focus. I scanned Leigh's room again, taking everything in and processing my surroundings. When my eyes fell on his sewing machine and narrowed in on the details I almost passed out cold on the carpet. _There was no way..._

"Is...is that a Bernina 830?!" I gasped, rushing to the desk and leaning in to get a better look at the fabled piece of $13,000 technology. I didn't even want to touch it and heard Leigh snicker as he walked over to me with a wild grin.

"Finally someone who recognizes! Yes, this is my baby...she's amazing." Leigh ran a soft hand along the pristine base.

"I'd do just about anything for one of these; the color touchscreen embroidery, LED sewing lights, drag-and-drop stitch combination, free-motion stitch regulator, jumbo bobbin...I'm extremely jealous."

Leigh was glowing and I could feel his thoughts growing eager to share his prized possession with someone who acknowledged its significance. It was the Ferrari of sewing machines and I was kind of freaking out, leaning in as Leigh showed me the mind-blowing technology with the touchscreen. Lysander hung back, laughing to himself as he watched us geek out. He showed me a few of the embroidery designs that he was having trouble with, one being an extremely intricate paisley design that he just couldn't get right. "I just don't know what it's missing, but it's obviously not complete, you know?"

"Yeah..." I droned, grabbing the stylus from his hand and peering up at him. "May I?"

"Be my guest!"

_'The incredible Luna to the rescue!' _Lysander sang in his head with a smirk.

I chewed my lip, leaning in and tapping the stylus to my chin for a moment before adding a few sweeping vines around the tear-drop shapes. Leigh and Lysander watched on while I combined swirling circles and just a hint of a leaf here, a flower there, among the unidentifiable designs that made up the embroidery. Drawing back the stylus and touching it to my cheek thoughtfully, the design looked whole.

_'Wow, Lunabelle...'_

"That's perfect!" Leigh leaned in, his mouth agape. He turned to me all at once and cupped my face dramatically with calloused hands. "Marry me?"

Oh Leigh, I can always count on you to say something completely out-of-line and ridiculous. Like _that _would ever happen!

I just shook my head and laughed as Leigh turned his attention again to the design I drew up for him.

"So, Luna...would you like to see my bedroom?" Lysander blurted, seeing a window of opportunity and taking it. I bit my tongue to hold in squealing excitement and nodded my head.

_'Very savvy, brother. Guess it runs in the family...' _I caught Leigh smiling to himself in thought and watched as Lysander rolled his eyes, apologizing for his brother's unsubtly needlessly. Leigh's silly thoughts only amused me.

"Well, my wallet is on the kitchen counter if you need it!" Leigh chirped, winking at his brother. Lysander scowled, shooting bashful daggers at him as I giggled softly.

_'Lysander the boss...what a proud big brother I am. He had the right idea, taking her here when it started to snow. Now they have an excuse to warm each other up! Touche', little brother. I'll have to remember that one!'_

After waving a quick farewell to Leigh, Lysander led me down the stairs in a dash._ 'Leigh has always got his mind in the gutter. Sorry about him.'_

_'Don't apologize! I quite like Leigh. I find his mind amusing. He's not a pervert or anything, he's just blunt. It's funny!'_

_'Yes, I've never heard any truly terrible thoughts in Leigh's mind. He thinks like the typical man, but he has his controls. I could do without the embarrassment, though.' _

As Lysander giggled with his thoughts I stopped at the end of the staircase, gleaming at a picture of a little boy of about one or two with mismatched eyes on the wall. He stared doe-eyed at the camera, a black backdrop highlighting his beautiful silver hair. My lips tugged into an intense smile as I studied the rosy-cheeked baby. _'Mom and Dad always seemed to go with black, as if to emphasize how pale I really am.'_

_'You were such a sweet baby!' _I gushed, biting my lip to quell any unbidden yips of pure bliss. There were others, too, and I took my time in studying every one. Lysander and Leigh as children, posing sweetly in a garden with muddy hands and faces, a younger looking Leigh standing outside a desolate building that would become his shop beaming proudly, and Christmas pictures of the two boys sitting at the same place by a trimmed tree in sweaters. I giggled as I came upon an old school photo of Lysander as a gawky and yet adorable adolescent, black-rimmed glasses framing a scrawny face, his hair in his eyes and his mouth pressed into a hard line.

_'You wore glasses?' _I pointed, turning to a _very_ grown-up version of the adorably frustrated Lysander in the picture.

He chuckled as he shook his head._ 'My eyesight is fine, I just thought I looked cool and unorthodox with fake glasses...thankfully I never smiled back then; you can't see my embarrassing braces.'_

_'You were positively adorable, Lysander. And you've grown into the most handsome man.' _

His lips parted into a subtle smile, and he blushed as we walked to the kitchen. Folding the dress from Leigh and placing it on the island in the kitchen before turning to the hallway, Lysander guided me to the end, opening the last door and letting me slip past him first. When he flicked on the light switch my eyes started immediately darting around the room with wonder.

It was comfortable and cool, light gray walls lined with white borders and black modern furniture stringing the contemporary look together. His room was quite possibly the cleanest in the entire house, everything spotless and in place.

A few abstract paintings adorned the walls along with a large Victorian fan and two long, regal peacock feathers that crossed paths like swords above his perfectly-made up king-sized bed.

His bookshelf overflowed with only the best literature while his dresser was spotlessly bare, but two straight shelves above it held up quirky trinkets that gave the wall some life. A vintage Atari, a medium-sized shark jaw in a shadow box and an elegant Victorian masquerade mask, among other things.

A writing desk sat tucked neatly in a corner with a lamp overhead, and in the right corner stood a compact entertainment system with a television. On the ground across from it was a large, blue beanbag chair; without a doubt the most out-of-place item in his room.

As I gaped at the beauty that was his bedroom he led me to his bed, patting a spot and asking me to take a seat, his eyes fixed on his dresser.

Sitting on the down comforter atop Lysander's bed felt like what I'd think sitting on a cloud would be like, and I pressed my palms to the soft plush as I watched him run a Lysol disinfectant wipe across his already-spotless dresser. I couldn't help but to giggle at his compulsive behavior and he turned to me with a lopsided smirk. _'I told you I had OCD...Th-there was dust. I'm sure I must seem insane." _

_'Of course not; I think it's quite adorable, actually. Is there anything I can help you with?' _ Lysander brought a hand to his chin, stroking it thoughtfully as he looked around the room, setting his sights on the beanbag chair.

He took a few steps before backing up and dropping down onto it, his entire body sinking into the conforming beads. He looked to me with a smile and held out his arms. _'You can come over here and cuddle with me...'_

My smile was vehement and in an instant I was hurling myself across the room and looking down, trying to figure out how to execute 'cuddling' in such a small space. Not once did I think about how the bed would've been a better alternative, though. The beanbag chair seemed much more appealing, even if there didn't seem to be enough room for the both of us.

Lysander reached out again, this time pulling me down on top of him, and as I straddled his hips with mine there was a hurricane ravaging my soul. My conscience was shaking her head, warning me that this was a little too close for comfort, but I ignored her completely and instead kept my sights set on the smiling face in front of mine.

"I love this beanbag chair; it's so comfortable. Even more comfortable now. I quite like this little arrangement... You're so close."

His words haunted me as I flushed scarlet. He was completely derailing me in one enticing look. He slowly brought his hands to my cheeks and touched his lips to mine, gently at first, over and over again before exposing my neck to his mouth. His teeth skimmed my chin before he began kissing the nape of my neck, and the sparks that each touch left in its wake sent me further into a dangerously lustful trance. His lips trailed back to mine in a turbulent, passionate apogee that soon devoured me whole and I was grabbing his face, pulling him closer as my tongue plunged into his mouth. The traction of the beanbag was our undoing, as Lysander sunk down in, bringing my hips closer to his. I couldn't help but to move them a bit, rocking and grinding against him in a fervent spell that made no sense to me. His fingers skimmed my back occasionally as they worked through my hair and I never wanted to stop this. I didn't know what I wanted from him, but I knew that I wanted him. Our thoughts were almost undetectable, mostly feelings and muffled mutters. All at once we were no longer ourselves. We were wild mouths and daring tongues, tangled hair and eager hips that wouldn't stop for anything.

I lost myself, and it was clear that Lysander did too, especially when his thoughts slipped away from mine in the blink of an eye. He squirmed under me and I pulled away, sensing his sudden discomfort as he surprisingly pushed me from him in one quick sweep.

I caught myself on the carpet and gawked at him as he rubbed his face uncomfortably with his hand, drawing a loud breath and closing his eyes tight. _'I'm sorry Luna...I'm sorry, please just give me a moment to collect myself. I'm so sorry.'_

His thoughts were back in mine just as quickly as they had disappeared and I couldn't do anything but stare and blink. I'd done something wrong...I'd scared him, hurt him? I wasn't sure, but it was gut-wrenching to watch him in such turmoil.

_'It wasn't you, I promise. It was me. I've never...I don't know. I can't explain it. I'm sorry.' _His thoughts dripped guilt, disgust in himself? I was so confused and wanted to cry.

_'Luna...I'm sorry.' _He looked up from behind his hand, red and panting. _'I thought that I could control myself...I thought I was beyond not being able to control my hormones like most of the mindless, disgusting men on this Earth but I'm truly no better than them at all.' _There was pain in his eyes and he shuffled very uncomfortably in the beanbag chair as he gazed at me. '_You make me so weak, Luna. You disarm me.'_

_'Lysander, please don't feel bad. You weakened me, too. Whatever you wanted, I wanted more.' _I sniffled at the end of my thought, rubbing my itchy nose as the drippy sensation washed over me once again. Lysander heard my stuffy thoughts and slowly got up, pulling at his tight pants as he walked across the room to a tissue box. He sat down across from me and handed me the tissue, and I dabbed at my nose, a little unsure of how to use it.

"I'll bet if you blow your nose you'll feel a lot better." He offered a smile, tilting his head as he reached to run his fingers through my hair.

"Blow my nose? H-how?" I was a little embarrassed, and hung my head as my cheeks ran hot. Of course I knew what 'blowing your nose' was, but I'd never had a runny nose in my life...I didn't know how.

"Oh, you sweet, adorable girl..." Lysander smiled as he shook his head, "hold one nostril closed at a time and breathe hard through your nose into the tissue."

After a few blows I instantly felt better, and balled up the used tissue, leaning back to throw it in the trashcan behind me. Lysander gathered my hands in his and bit his lip, his mind racing as he looked at me.

_'I really am sorry about freaking out on you, Lunabelle. I didn't want to stop, and I guess that kind of scared me. Mentally, and uh, physically. I just don't want to scare you, too. We're moving so quickly and I'm so new to this...I don't want to mess anything up..." _

I wrapped my arms around him, nuzzling my face into his neck and kissing him tenderly. _'That's impossible, Lysander. Everything you do and will do is perfect. I love you so much.'_

* * *

**A/N: THE FLUFF IS CONSUMING ME AND I'M NOT EVEN SORRY.**

**Stay tuned for more fluff and some big surprises and secrets coming your way. I LOVE writing this story and am blown away by the incredible support and love you guys continue to show me. You have no idea how much it means! **

**XOXO** **Exactlyamanda **


	22. Chapter Twenty One

**Chapter Twenty One: A Promising Christmas**

**A/N: Merry Christmas in January! Classy, huh?**

* * *

Lysander was one of those people who everyone hated having on their Christmas list. I couldn't hate anything about him even if I tried, but having him on the tippity-top of my list was intimidating. My creativity was usually all over the place, but for Lysander, it took me weeks of thoughtful consideration to come up with the perfect present. Any old gift just wouldn't do.

"I'm_ so_ excited to meet your parents!" I told Lysander through the phone, trying not to burn myself with the hot glue gun in my hands while in the process of multitasking.

Lysander's parents were in town to spend Christmas with their boys, and I'd been invited to join in the Larkin festivities. My father and I never really did anything after the morning gift routine, so convincing him to let me go was easy. Lysander even extended the invitation to my father. I wouldn't have been able to leave him home alone on Christmas, and was glad that he agreed to come with me.

"They're just as excited to meet you, I just hope they don't scare you off..."

"Unless they're secret aliens or belligerent mobster drug lords I don't think that's possible..."

His soft, humming snickers sent shivers down my spine, and I wished I could take the sweet sound and put it in a box to open whenever I needed cheering up. "No, nothing that exciting. They're just...eccentric. My mother cried when I told her about you."

"Aw, that's so sweet!"

"And my father was surprised, because he was for some reason under the impression that I was gay."

"W-why would he think that?!" _No, seriously..._why would _anyone _think that? It was impossible to imagine a gay Lysander, especially with the times we'd shared in Leigh's backroom, the field, and his beanbag chair still fresh in my memory, haunting me every single time that I blinked.

"I've never shown any interest in a girl before." He laughed, and I could picture him sitting on his bed with his back against the wall, playing with the ends of his hair. "...But to say I was interested in you, my beautiful girl, would be an understatement."

* * *

**CHRISTMAS MORNING**

* * *

It's only instinct for me to wake up ridiculously early on Christmas morning. My eyelids began to flutter while the sun rose over the hemisphere, and when the glowing digital letters came into view I tossed onto my side with a sigh. 6:12am, and I was officially excited and awake. Of course, not a creature was stirring, not even father, and I couldn't get away with jumping on the bed to wake him at seventeen.

_'Merry Christmas! :) It's impossible for me to sleep past sunrise on Christmas morning!' _Sending Lysander a 'good morning' message was always the first thing I did once my eyes could adjust to the bright screen of my phone. I was surprised though, when a reply came almost immediately.

_'Merry Christmas Luna! We've been up since 5:00 baking cookies. My parents woke US up! Talk about irony. I didn't want to wake you with a text message, but I'm very glad you're awake now. I missed you all night.'_

I'd never heard of such a thing; parents that willingly woke up early on Christmas just to get their children out of bed... It was quite possibly the cutest thing I'd ever heard of, and I was suddenly a thousand times more excited to meet them.

About an hour passed by before I finally heard the footsteps of father below and raced down the stairs in my nightgown, unable to control my childish mirth. When he saw me he smiled, putting his hands on his hips and snickering at my undeniable excitement._ 'Merry Christmas Lulu! Why don't you come and see what Santa Claus brought you?'_

'Santa Claus' was much too generous, and I was in beside myself with gratitude as I opened all of the wonderful gifts that he so expertly chose for me. I asked father to take a dorky picture of me holding my new sewing machine, a pile of new fabrics, yarns, and the rest of my haul surrounding me to send to Lysander, wishing that he too could be here with me.

Lysander countered my picture with one of him and Leigh wearing ridiculous reindeer-antler-headbands in front of their tree. Leigh held up two thumbs, an exaggerated smile playing on his lips while Lysander seemed to be shaking his head. Laughing wildly, I couldn't help but to show father the silly picture.

He took my phone and narrowed his eyes from behind his glasses, pushing them in as he cleared his throat. "Lysander's older brother?"

"Yeah, that's Leigh. You'll meet him today!"

"Well, there are a few things I wanted to get done before going over to the Larkins'... What time were they expecting us?" Father sat back in his chair.

"I'm sure we could stop over at any time..." _'But I kind of wanted to go soon...'_

"Well, you may go whenever you'd like. If you'd write down the address before you go I'll drop by later on." He smiled, his lenient kindness causing me to jump up and kiss him on the cheek.

"Oh thank you, father! In that case, I'll get ready right away!"

Father scoffed, rolling his eyes playfully. "You've got that same wild gleam in your eyes. Just like..." His brow creased as his voice faded and I came to an excruciating halt. I hated when he let things like this slip. I hated it. _'...Just like your mother.'_

It was completely selfish of me to be upset at all. _I shouldn't feel upset, I should feel guilty. _I didn't even _know her_. Father did. He loved her, and she'd still be here, loving us right back if it hadn't been for me. It was my fault that she wasn't here with us to wrap the presents in pretty packaging and perfect bows, or to make sure to leave milk and cookies for Santa, even if I don't believe anymore.

It was my fault that she wasn't here to meet Lysander and tell me how cute she thought he was, or to sit with me on my bed and braid my hair while telling me the story of how she and father fell in love. _It was my fault and I was certain that somewhere deep, down inside, father hated me for it._

My eyes were burning and I swallowed a hard, uncomfortable knot in my throat, gliding swiftly up the stairs to my room and trying to push away all of the pathetic thoughts in my head. I felt so stupid.

I got ready as quickly as I could, picking out a short, long-sleeved black lace dress, a red cardigan sweater and long black boots. In my straight blonde hair I set a red headband with a large bow attached to the side, and pulling my pea coat over it all, I needed to see Lysander. He could always make the bad feelings disappear.

Father promised to call before he left the house, and giving him an extra-long hug, pouring all of my gratitude to him for loving me despite everything, I couldn't have possibly gotten myself out of the house faster.

_'I'm on my way :)' _I typed out to Lysander, but decided in the end not to send. I wanted to surprise him; he wasn't expecting me so soon. Pulling the sleeves of my pea coat further up my arms, I was still in awe of my new world. Soft flecks of snow were fluttering down all around me and for the first time in my life, Christmas looked like Christmas.

Lysander's house wasn't far and half-jogging most of the way I arrived in mere minutes. I skipped merrily down his driveway, taking a moment to flatten my hair in one last nervous attempt to look presentable when the actual realization that I was meeting Lysander's parents sunk in.

I didn't even have to knock. Lysander must've been standing close by because it wasn't soon after I stepped foot on the porch that I heard his thoughts in mine.

He opened the door and slid through the frame, his eyebrows arching along with his smile.

_'Luna, what a pleasant surprise! I must've been extra good this year...' _He wrapped his arms around me, planting four sweet kisses on my lips with his grin. "Merry Christmas. You look absolutely beautiful." His eyes trickled down to my bare legs and then back up, and he shook his head, tugging at the collar of my coat.

_'You walked here all alone in this weather? I would've picked you up! You must be frozen.'_

I dismissed his worries with another kiss, taking his hands in mine. "I wanted to surprise you! Merry Christmas, Lysander!"

He was just as handsome as always, standing tall and willowy in tight gray slacks, narrow black shoes tucked beneath them. He wore a white collared shirt with a dusty-gray vest over it, a red string-tie tied neatly around his neck. His freshly washed hair fell around his face, the crisp smell of peppermint shampoo as intoxicating as ever.

_'I'm certainly glad that you're here now, my love. Let's get you into the house before you catch your death!'_

Once inside, I was greeted by a comfortable warmth that prompted me to take off my jacket and hang it up, all while breathing in the delightful smell of pinewood and pumpkin pie as it lingered in the air around us.

"Is she here?!" I heard a shrill echo coming from the kitchen, to which Lysander chuckled under his breath.

"Yes, mother. She's here."

He started to lead me to the kitchen before we were stopped by reverberating footsteps. A woman who I could only assume was Lysander's mother came into view from around the corner, her vibrant curly red hair stealing my attention immediately, followed of course by her outlandishly loud Christmas sweater, sequined Santa hat, and faux-fur boots.

"Luna!" She gasped, prancing to me with a smile. I had no idea how to react, and all the while Lysander smirked on, holding tight to my hand as I opened my mouth to say something, anything. In one quick sweeping motion she was throwing her arms around me, pulling me in for a forthcoming embrace and catching me off guard.

_'Told you.' _Lysander let go of my hand to laugh.

"Oh Lysander, she's even prettier than you described!" Mrs. Larkin held my shoulders with a blindingly white ear-to-ear smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Larkin. I've heard so much about you!" My voice glazed over with mousy quietude as it usually did in the presence of new people.

"Oh sweetheart, please call me Audrey!" Her voice was wispy, sweet and smooth as butter, and she turned her head towards the kitchen, taking in a deep breath. "CARTER! Luna's here!"

Laughter that I could identify as Leigh's mixed with a deeper, more defined voice rang out from the kitchen and around the corner until a tall raven-haired man in a flannel button-up shirt and reindeer antlers like the ones Lysander wore in the picture he'd sent me barreled through the threshold. He was _undoubtedly_ Leigh's father; catching just a flash-glimpse of the two standing beside each other was eerie, like seeing a forty-something Leigh from the future.

"There she is!" He extended his arms to me, pulling me in for a hug and placing a strong, tender hand on my shoulder just as Audrey had. "Well, aren't you just as pretty as a picture?"

My cheeks burst into flames and I coughed away the fluster with a smile. "Th-thank you sir...M-merry Christmas! It's so nice to finally meet you."

"Sir? Gosh, are my grays showing? Lysander, you're going to have to teach me how to dye my hair like you do! Call me Carter!"

"Lysander just won't shut up about you, Luna. I feel like I know you already!" Audrey seemed to wear a permanent smile, one just as striking as her son's as she admired us together.

"Merry Christmas, Luna!" Leigh waved from behind his parents. I gave him a quick hello, pointing out the fact that he was still donning those reindeer antlers on his head, and proudly, too! So Lysander was the only one that had ditched his from this morning's picture..._to impress me? _

_'Are you impressed?' _Lysander blushed, a smirk gleaming on his cheeks as he peeked out temptingly from behind his bangs. Two could play at this game.

_'Maybe... I think you looked adorable as a deer, though.' _I bit onto my smiling lips and gave him a subtle wink.

Lysander shook his head. _'Well then, I might've found a reason to put them back on.'_

"Shall we congregate to the living room for Luna's presents?" Audrey twittered happily, to which I responded by experiencing a minor heart attack. _Presents? Oh God... _I hadn't brought a gift for Lysander's parents! I wasn't sure what they liked and didn't have a whole lot of supplies and money...the excuses could go on and on, but honestly the idea hadn't even crossed my mind at all. Oh, they were surely going to hate me, if they didn't already.

Walking nervously through to the living room I decided to take a peek into the new minds surrounding me to prepare myself for regaining their approval.

_'I'm so happy for my sweet baby boy... He's always been so shy; I wasn't sure he'd ever have the confidence in himself to court a girl...and a gorgeous one, at that! She's just as polite and soft-spoken as Lysander, and so much sweeter than anyone Leigh has ever brought to Christmas, to boot! I hope she sees how special Lysander really is.'_

Oh, how I wished I could speak with Audrey telepathically in that moment. I wanted her to know that I was well-aware that her son was amazing. I wanted to hug her and thank her for bringing Lysander into this world and for being so welcoming to me, right from the very start. I could see instantly where Lysander got his kind heart.

_'Finally someone who sees past little Lys' awkwardness...I worried for him. He's so different, so unique. Kid didn't even start talking until he was in Kindergarten! I hope it works out for him. If they aren't a match made in Heaven then I'll be damned!' _Carter's thoughts were equally as soothing to me and it was refreshing to hear that they were so genuinely happy for Lysander and I.

_'Sounds like they like you, Lunabelle. And how could they not? They're right. You're perfect for me.' _My favorite thoughts trickled in behind his father's and I glanced back to Lysander with a smile, grabbing onto his hand to let him lead me the rest of the way.

Sure, Lysander's parents liked me now, but once they found out that I didn't have anything for them they'd write me off as some selfish snob; I was quite certain of it, and my palms sweat in time with my erratic heartbeat.

_'Luna, that's preposterous! They don't expect anything from you!'_

I still couldn't quite catch my breath. Lysander sat, crossing his legs on the ground, and I pulled my dress over my knees, sitting right beside him. I was nervous, to say the least... I had no idea what to expect. Christmas had always been the same exact way for seventeen years and I was about to witness something new and totally different.

"Luna, darling, open this one first!"

Audrey placed a flimsy, soft present in my lap and I was frozen. I had no idea how to react to a stranger giving me a gift, and couldn't help but to just stare, doe-eyed and gaping. A moment longer and I would've appeared completely paralyzed to everyone around me. I shook my head, snapping myself out of the trance and looking up Audrey. "Th-thank you! Y-you shouldn't have!"

"You'll really be saying that when you see what it is!" Leigh blurted jokingly, receiving an elbow to the ribs from his father.

My hands trembled as I tore back the paper, and when the red sequined material was exposed, I found myself smiling from ear to ear. I pulled out the sequined Santa hat and held it up, giggling as I admired the bushy white trim and pompom at the end. "_Oh_, I love it!"

"It wouldn't be a Larkin Christmas without an embarrassing Christmas accessory! You're one of us now, Luna!" Carter laughed from the couch.

Lysander looked on with bright eyes and I turned to his mother, the muscles in my face hurting. "We match!"

"The girls get to wear the pretty hats while the boys get the antlers. Speaking of antlers, here are yours, Lysander! Aren't you going to wear them?"

I couldn't stop smiling, slipping my headband off and replacing it with my new hat while Lysander reluctantly positioned the antlers atop his head. He looked absolutely adorable and I begged him to keep them on for me.

I was in a dream. It was as if I'd received some kind of prize of high honor, wearing this hat. Nothing could compared to the feeling of being accepted so quickly by Lysander's family.

Leigh went _overboard_ with his gift giving, and while a part of me wished he would stop handing me present after present I was eternally grateful to him for all of the things he'd made for me. Gorgeous Victorian dresses, a pair of white boots, blouses, hats, and even a new nightgown, my face was a very festive color of red that matched my hat and cardigan perfectly. In exchange, I gave Leigh the present that I'd crafted for him- a black toy Mustang GT with a big pincushion where the seats would normally be. Leigh's face showed what his thoughts screamed, excitable gratitude ringing through my ears from his mind and his mouth.

Leaving Leigh to push his new pincushion around on carpet like a child, Lysander stole my attention almost immediately, looking past my eyes with puzzling sincerity. _'Lunabelle, I'll have to give you my gift a little later, when we find a moment to be alone. Is that alright?' _

What was he planning? Oh, how I wished I could get into that part of Lysander's mind that he keeps the secrets even I can't see. _'Of course. Would you like yours now?' _

He chewed his lip and nodded his head, his eyes glazed with a hint of exhilaration. Ha! Caught you! I knew that secretly you liked to receive gifts, just like everyone else!

I handed him the carefully wrapped package, capturing everyone in the rooms attention as he took it and just stared blankly down at it.

_'Open it!' _

He tore back the paper slowly, his face scrunching into soft laughter when his unwrapping revealed a bulk-sized box of Strawberry Poptarts. Lysander was listening to my instructions though, and knew that there weren't any Poptarts in the box. He opened it up, and looking inside I could hear his heartbeat quicken as a genuine smile lit up his entire face.

_'Luna, baby... This couldn't be more perfect," _He thought lovingly, pulling out the 8 x 10 picture frame that held a picture of us from the field. Using flattened pieces of driftwood, I glued a green and yellow bow on the side where his face was closest and a black bow on my side. Among the bows were different things; pebbles from the creek, pressed and dried blades of tall grass from our field, seashells, feathers, buttons, and in the bare spaces I painted hearts and thought-bubbles, to which Lysander touched his fingers appreciatively with a glowing, thoughtful expression._ 'I can't possibly compete with this...' _

"Is she not the sweetest thing!?" Audrey expressed from the couch.

"I love this so much. Thank you..." Lysander ripped his gaze away from the picture to get an eyeful of the real thing, and I found myself watching him fall in love with me all over again. I wanted to kiss him so badly; I wished I could've, right here, in front of _everyone._

"Well, aren't you going to kiss her?" Lysander's father cupped his hands over his mouth to blurt, breaking our silent stare of undying love and looming desire.

"Yeah! Let's see a kiss!"

"Kiss her!"

Lysander's lips curled into a snickering smirk as he looked to his parents with cheeks as red as mine. Despite our timidity, he gave the people what they wanted. Cupping my face with his hands, he pulled my lips to his, capturing me in front of everyone as they giddily cheered us on.

"Oh, Lysander has finally found his Hermia!" Audrey squealed with delight, causing me to pull away for a breath of laughter.

Mr. and Mrs. Larkin were different than my father; they were unconventional, and I absolutely adored that. I could feel the love that they had for their boys, and even for me, a girl that they'd only just met but knew made their son undeniably the happiest he'd ever been.

"Alright Luna," Audrey started once Lysander and I finished our quick kiss, "we have one more gift for you. Let me go and get him out of the bedroom..." She jumped up from the couch and scurried down the hallway, Lysander's eyes narrowing at the last word and mine following suit.

_...Him!? _What did they get me?

Lysander's frazzled thoughts were hard to ignore. _'They take everything so literally...just because I told them that she liked birds didn't mean...' _

Before I had time to react Audrey appeared in the doorway, holding the handle of a small dome-shaped birdcage, a tiny yellow canary perched on a suspended wooden block.

I couldn't breath.

_This isn't really happening right now, is it?_

"Merry Christmas Luna!" She held up the cage with a smile, and I shot up as fast as I could, forgetting everything about etiquette and courtesy as I rushed to her.

"Wait, really?! Y-you mean...f-for me? Really? Oh my God! Really? N-no...it's too much!" I was gasping, laughing, and hyperventilating all at once; all I wanted to do was jump up and down and spin in circles. I'd always wanted a pet of my own, but was never sure what father would allow. He couldn't say no now; I already had one!

Audrey laughed, watching me study the bird frantically and looking to her husband with a wink. "I think she likes him!"

Lysander's hand landed on my shoulder as I admired my new little friend through the cage. _'You really like him? I was kind of worried for a second there... A live bird is not exactly a conventional gift.' _

"I love him! Oh, you have no idea how much this means to me. He's precious!"

"What shall we call him, then?" Lysander's eyes gleamed as he bent down to peek inside the cage, a smirk tugging at his cheeks. A name! My precious little canary needed the perfect name!

"Hm, do you have anything in mind?"

Lysander thought for a moment, shaking his head with a shrug. "Nothing off the top of my head. It'll come to me, though!"

"Thank you so much...this was so thoughtful" My breathing hitched as I turned to Audrey and Carter. Now I felt _truly_ terrible about not having a gift in return. "I'm _so_ sorry that I didn't bring anything for you..."

"Oh sweetie, just meeting you is enough! We've never seen Lysander so happy before! He's smiling real, sincere smiles and he's laughing- that's not the Lysander we knew! He's always wandered through life, somehow incomplete, like he's always had something troubling him. We've worried about him for too long, but not anymore! You've given us much more than you could ever wrap in paper and put under a tree. We're just glad you're here with us, Luna!"

"And I'm so glad to be here. It's the greatest honor of my life to love your son. I can't thank you enough, for everything..." I kept it short, knowing that if I went any further with my appreciation to them for everything; for bringing Lysander into the world and raising him, for moving to Amoris and letting him stay so that he could someday sweep me off my feet, I'd burst into tears.

Just when I though I might crack, a ringtone went off from inside my pocket. "Oh, it must be my father. If you'll just excuse me for just a moment..." I muttered politely, walking to the hallway to answer.

Father and I talked briefly; he only called to let me know that he was headed over, the buzz and rumble of his car in the background. I gave him the go-ahead to get here as soon as he could, keeping the call quick and mannerly.

"Is your father on his way?" Lysander asked from the living room, placing the little bird's cage on the coffee table as he made his way closer.

"Yes, he'll be here soon!"

"Oh yes, I forgot to ask you if your father was going to be able to join us for coffee. Glad he could make it!" Carter expressed, his deep, resonating voice echoing off of every flat surface.

Audrey smiled, but I spied the spark of something else in her eyes, especially when she didn't speak. Was that..._pity? _

_'...Poor dear, I'd almost forgotten that she only has her father. She's so polite and ladylike for someone brought up without a woman around to teach her; she really is a marvel.'_ Audrey's thoughts flowed smoothly into mine.

She didn't mean any harm; I should take her complimenting thoughts over the ones about my pathetic mommy-issues. It's not a big deal, it's just a thought. _Don't let it bother you..._

Leigh was giving me_ that _look too, holding his chin thoughtfully in his hand on the loveseat. He skewed his mouth to the side, as if he were labeling me a truly pitiful soul. _'Hmm, I've never asked Lysander what happened to Luna's mom. Maybe she died? Oh, poor Luna... No brain, bad brain! Resist the urge to ask...resist the urge to ask!' _

No, Leigh... My mother isn't dead. Or well, she could be. I wouldn't know because I ran her off twelve years ago and haven't seen her since. Keep your pity, sweet boy. I know you mean well, too.

"Luna, would you like to wait by the door?" Lysander took my hand, leading me towards the door without an answer. As we strayed away from the others he turned to me and wrapped me in his arms. _'I cannot imagine how hard the holidays are for you. I'm so sorry that you've had to carry the guilt of your mother's abandonment on your shoulders for so long but you need to realize that it's not your fault, no matter how much you want to blame yourself. I promise that I'll do everything in my power to make sure that someday you realize that...' _

_Oh no, the tears... _I couldn't stop them from breaking past my eyelashes and rolling down my cheeks. I nuzzled my face into Lysander's shoulder as he rubbed my back. Thankfully, before I broke down completely we were interrupted doorbell, and Lysander reached out to wipe my tears before the sleeves of my dress got to them. He offered me a smile that could clear the sky of the biggest rain cloud,_ 'We'll revisit this topic someday, Luna. Today is Christmas, and there's no crying allowed on Christmas! You're far too beautiful to be upset for one more second.' _

He had the power to make me happy no matter what, and I acknowledged everything at once, nodding my head before pulling all of my petty emotions back down to the bottom of my heart, prancing towards the door to let father in. By now, Lysander's parents and Leigh had trickled into the foyer to greet him. I gave father an especially affectionate hug when he stepped inside.

"Hello Lulu! My, what a lovely hat you've got!" Father expressed with a smile before looking beyond me and extending his hand to Lysander.

"Merry Christmas, Lysander! Good to see you."

"Merry Christmas to you, sir. I'm glad you could join us today."

Father peered over Lysander, sociably waving a hello to invite Leigh, Carter and Audrey over to introduce themselves. They stayed put, making small talk for a while as Lysander and I stood guard, observing their conversations to make sure that everyone was interacting just as we'd hoped. Much to our delight, the Larkins had father laughing within minutes, father charming them with his charismatic appeal.

"Luna! Why don't you show your father your new little friend while I make us some coffee! Or would you prefer cocoa?" Audrey suggested.

"Luna prefers green tea and honey, actually!" _Oh Lysander, I can always count on you to be completely perfect. How do you know? Oh yes, you're a telepath. _

"Your favorite, too! I'll make two cups!"

"Luna, don't tell me _this _endearing little fellow is your new friend..." Father walked to the bird cage, leaning in to get a better look at the canary. I bit my lip, joining him with an innocent smirk.

"He was a gift from Lysander's parents...isn't he lovely?"

Father turned his eyes to me, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms. "Yes, he's quite lovely indeed. We'll go out and get some bird feed tomorrow."

...Wait, does this mean that father approves? That was _much _easier than I had foreseen... It was my lucky day!

"So Luna!" Carted blurted out of no where, resting his feet on the ottoman with a smirk, "have you seen Lysander's tattoo yet?"

_Oh dear..._

"_Tattoo?_ Like, a_ permanent tattoo_?" Father took a seat across from us and crossed his legs, intimidatingly intrigued as he narrowed his eyes at a sweating, blinking Lysander who had just been caught completely off guard.

"Well, um...k-kind of, sort of..." Lysander was a stammering mess and I watched on in horror.

"Sort of? I hope you don't mind my asking, but how does one 'sort of' have a tattoo? Do you have a half of one?" Father laughed, covering his daunting annoyance with casual mirth.

"Oh no, it's definitely not a half of one! It's huge!" Carter _obviously _wasn't picking up on Lysander's hinting stares. Father's eyebrows arched, and he stared at a spot on the ground, thinking everything over.

"I couldn't believe it when Leigh first sent me the picture; a pair of wings on his back! It's really quite beautiful." Audrey caught the conversation, holding a tray of mugs and passing them around. Father took a long, hot sip of his coffee before placing it down on the side table and folding his hands over his knee.

"On your back, hm? So Luna, _have _you seen his tattoo?"

_Oh God, oh God..._

"Um, Lysander showed me once. He just lifted up the back of his shirt..." I kept the _true_ story of how I discovered Lysander's tattoo buried deep in the back of my mind, where I seriously hoped father wouldn't find it.

"Nu-not the entire shirt...just the back..." Lysander added in, even though I had just explained the same thing.

"Yeah, it was just the back." Why did I feel the need to validate that for a _third_ time?

_'Interesting... Don't get any ideas, now. I better not find any tattoos on you. Ever.'_

_'O-of course not, father...never!'_

Oh, how wonderfully awkward! Would anyone care to change the subject?

Lysander and I stayed relatively quiet while our parents and Mr. Chatterbox-Leigh gabbed on, first about their jobs. I learned that Lysander's parents were audiobook narrators, which shouldn't have come as such a surprise considering they both had these uncanny golden voices. It must've been an inherited talent; Lysander's singing voice was definitely something just as golden and extraordinary.

The conversations soon turned into a game of 'Who Can Tell the Most Embarrassing Story About Their Child?", and father just _loved_ to humiliate me. He chose only the best stories: Four-year-old Luna attempting to shave her face just like her daddy, seven-year-old Luna, convinced that she could become a cat one day if she spent hours practicing her mews and purrs, among other cat duties; the hilarious torment went on and on.

Audrey and Carter enjoyed embarrassing Lysander just as much, and told us stories of Lysander the toddler, who went through a stage where he refused to wear pants that eventually ended when he sat on a bed of fire ants. When he was six, he thought he could be a gardener just like his mom and ripped out every single plant in the garden, and when he was sixteen he got carpel tunnel syndrome in _both_ wrists, (he's ambidextrous) from always writing, all the time.

Hearing countless childhood stories about my Lysander was worth the embarrassment of father's counter-stories by a longshot. It was like discovering another side of him; like reading his history book, learning about things that shaped him into the person he is today.

Long after our hot drinks were gone, we sat surrounded by empty mugs and heaving chests, and I was so glad to see father actually having a good time and enjoying himself. He seemed to appreciate the Larkins and their eccentric sense of humor, even if they were the complete opposites of each other. Opposites attract, right?

Father decided to go home at around 4:00 with the hopes of spending the rest of his Christmas relaxing in front of the television. I was to be home by 8:00, which came as a shock to me seeing as he'd already let me spend my entire day so far with Lysander. I couldn't believe his leniency... It really was my lucky day! I was beginning to think that I'd finally earned his trust. It was a wonderful surprise to say the least, especially after he'd discovered that my boyfriend had _a big, bad tattoo _on his back that I thought for sure he'd take a little harder. I wasn't one to argue with a good thing, though.

After spending a few more conversations with Lysander's parents, Lysander and I both got the same idea at around the same time. We were seriously craving some alone time, and soon enough, Lysander was pulling me from the couch all at once, slipping away down the hallways, unnoticed while Leigh told his parents a story.

Lysander had to assure me multiple times on our way to his bedroom that his parents didn't care about us being alone in his room. He even joked that we could probably get away with welding the door shut and no one would care. I was absolutely astonished by how much Lysander's parents trusted us... _They shouldn't._

He ushered me in, closing the door behind us with a sigh. It was refreshing to finally find ourselves alone, and I backed up to sit on his bed, staring at Lysander as he turned to gaze right back at me. His lips parted into a dancing smile as he looked down the picture frame he held in his hands. Admiring it just a second longer, he placed it on the bare nightstand right beside his bed before taking a seat. _'Have you had a good Christmas so far, sweet girl?' _

_'My whole life I've had nothing but warm, lonely Christmas'. This year I got snow...real snow; something I never thought I'd ever experience. And spending the entire day with you, and meeting your parents; they make me feel like I belong here with you... This is how Christmas is supposed to be. It's been the best of my life. ' _

_'That's because you do belong here with me! It's been the best of my life, too. I've never been so happy. My parents are right. You saved me, you know. I've always been lost, I've never felt whole. I lived my whole life thinking that I was a monster, but I'm not. I'm so thankful for my telepathy...it lead me straight to you. You're my beginning Luna. I love you so much...'_

Wrapping me in an intoxicating embraceI wanted to stay locked in his love forever. He planted a sweet kiss on my forehead before sitting up and gathering my hands in his, staring through to my soul again. _'I have something for you Luna, but I've got to explain it first to avoid freaking you out, alright?' _

I wordlessly agreed, never once breaking eye contact as he cleared his throat. "I can't imagine the pain you've suffered being abandoned by someone who is supposed to love you unconditionally, but I promise you that I will never, ever leave you as long as I live. I know that this relationship has skyrocketed from 0 to 100 in a matter of weeks, but I feel like I've known you my whole life... I've certainly loved you my whole life. Ever since I knew what love was I've dreamed of you, and now you're here, and you're_ real_, and you're perfect. You're the answer to every wish I've ever made on stars and birthday candles that I thought would never come true. I know it's bold to say, but I love you unconditionally and I know with all of my heart that you're the one. If someday you stop loving me, I'll always be here waiting because there just isn't anyone else. I wouldn't ever dream of leaving you, Luna. I want to give you something as a symbol of my promise to you; my promise that I'll never leave you."

I'd been under the impression that Lysander had already completely stolen my heart weeks ago, but no, in that moment as I gazed into his eyes and realized just how much I loved him, _I wanted him forever. _

"We were meant to be..." I blurted, even though I was supposed to be the listener. "I never believed in fate but this isn't just a coincidence. I truly thought I'd been damned to spend my life alone because of what I am. I'd learned early on that people like me didn't get to live happily every after... I didn't want to come to Amoris. I hated this place for replacing the only 'home' I'd ever known, and then you came along and you showed me what home really is. We live in a world that wasn't meant for people like us. According to the rest of the world we shouldn't even exist, and because of that fact I've never truly felt at home a day in my life. It's like I've been an alien on this planet, wandering around lost and alone my entire life; until now. Me and you...we've managed to create a world of our very own; a world that only we know_._"

"God, I love you so much..." Lysander managed to gasp before his lips were on mine, his fingers tangled in my hair. We were kissing each other just as we'd kissed the very moment we realized we loved each other. I would've been content to kiss him until I died in his arms, but Lysander had other plans, and soon fought to rip his lips from mine in an attempt to finish what he had started.

_'Are you ready for your present, Lunabelle?' _He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out...a ring box? _Oh my god... What is he doing? _

_'It's not what you think. There will be time for that later.' _He reassured me as he placed the black velvet box in my palms, grabbing his bottom lip with his teeth as he watched me open it.

It was _exactly_ what I'd thought, actually...a ring! A sparkling silver stoneless band that seemed to wink at me from inside the box as I blinked vacantly down at it. _'It's not an engagement ring, Luna. Not yet. Like I said, we've plenty of time for that, and plus, I'd be on bended knee if it were...' _He carefully took it from my hands, plucking the ring from the box.

_'It's a promise ring. I want you to have something that you can keep with you always, even when I can't be with you, to remind you every second of my promise to you; my promise that I'll never leave you. Come what may, there isn't anything stronger in this world than our love, because, as you said quite perfectly, we live in a world that only we know.'_

He turned the ring in his hand and held it up for me to observe more closely, his mind pointing to a spot where tiny white cursive letters spelled out the words, _'Only we know'. _I was paralyzed, breathless, and unaware of anything else but him and his perfect ring.

I hadn't even realized I was crying until Lysander reached to wipe away my tears. He wordlessly reached to me, taking my left hand in his, and I watched myself instinctively hold out my ring finger, letting him slip his promise on as tears continuously streamed down my cheeks. _'Why are you crying, my love? You don't like it, do you?' _

_'Oh Lysander, it's perfect! I'm just happy... It's all so real to me now! I really found you; it's not just a dream anymore. This is real. I'm not going to be alone...' _

_'No Luna, you won't ever be alone...' _He looked down to the ring on my finger before bringing his eyes back to mine,_ 'I promise.'_

* * *

**A/N: Are you people dead yet from fluffy overdose? I sure hope not, because I love youuuu.**

**This chapter ended up coming out SO much longer than I'd planned. I hope it wasn't too boring for any of you! D: **

**I'm honestly pretty close to dying a slow, painful fluff-induced death myself, but like I saaaaaid, you'll be missing it in just a few chapters! ;D Hehehe!**

**I'm beside myself with excitement for the next chapter, and the next chapter after that...and the next chapter after that. **

**Annnnnd you guys are my favorite people in the world, just sayin'. :) **

**XOXO**


	23. Chapter Twenty Two

**Chapter Twenty Two: Midnight**

* * *

I was honestly beginning to think that my life was _perfect. _Christmas, followed by a week's worth of snowball fights, hot tea and handholding, and a New Years Eve kiss to top it all off had me counting my lucky stars, trying to justify what I ever did to deserve this.

Perfection had been nothing but a hyperbole in my mind until I met Lysander. No one but us could understand or even grasp the fact that what we had _was perfect_ in every single fleck of its being, and no one could tell me that it was anything less. If _I_ had _any _business existing, defying every law of nature and science on a daily basis, surely the idea of perfection wasn't _that_ farfetched.

Real, immortal, untarnished, perfection...that's what I was going with right up until around 9:00am on Monday after winter break. I had kissed Lysander right on the mouth at midnight on January 1st, 2013...wasn't that supposed to be good luck or something?

If so, it wasn't showing yet.

What I held in my shaky hands had me thinking that I'd been a bit hasty, using perfection to describe my life.

_This wasn't perfect. Oh, no._

I could barely breathe, and the breaths I did manage to respire were uneven and melodramatic. Yes, these grades were certainly _not_ perfect. I'd honestly forgotten that we'd taken the midterms right before the break, and when Lysander and I were both reminded the moment we walked into school, I didn't know what to expect. Either way, I didn't expect this.

Without Lysander behind me, his hand placed supportively on my shoulder, I would've fallen backwards and died, right there on the floor of Classroom B.

I could imagine Peggy Blanche trying to get close-up pictures of my lifeless body for the inevitable, "Strange girl dies after discovering terrible grades" article that would make the front page of the school's and Amoris' newspapers. My poor, sweet Lysander would do his best to shield my vulnerable corpse from the eye of the media in a last act of valor, an ode to our everlasting love that would burn on even after they buried me.

Oh, I can see Lysander now, all dressed in black. Father is there, too. See, father? This is what happens when you expect too much from your daughter. She dies.

What a sad twist of fate indeed. If only I had-

_'Stop it, Luna!' _Lysander interjected. '_You know I hate those grotesque ideates of yours. I hate that you let your beautiful mind wander upon such things...'_ _' _

I blinked up at him, watching as he pressed his mouth into a hard line before softening his face again. '_Just look at your marks for Literature, U.S History and Latin! They're very impressive...' _

His optimism was admirable as always, but I couldn't appreciate it at a time like this. Not when my whole life, so it seemed, was staring at me, pointing and laughing from the paper in my hands. My lips were dry and chapped shut. Lysander and I's communicational skills were a blessing I could've been counting to make myself feel slightly better about the situation, because talking was completely out of the question.

_'I've never done anything like this. My grades for one half of the semester's classes don't mean a thing when you combine them with other half. I failed Calculus and Physics completely, and barely passed Economics. Father is going to send me away to some demented boarding school for bad girls, I just know it.'_

Lysander just rolled his eyes, cupping my face in his hands as if he hadn't a care in the world. _'He won't do that. You'll be fine! Just explain to him that the curriculum and classroom setting was hard to get used to. He knows you're a brilliant girl. Tell him I'm tutoring you!'_

_'He's been under the impression that we spend practically every day after school studying, remember? Oh, I'm going to be sick...'_

For a split second I thought I witnessed the hint of crestfallen uncertainty flash on Lysander's seemingly unbreakable poker-face, but like a shooting star, it disappeared so quickly that I was left questioned whether I'd seen anything at all.

Instead, he quirked an eyebrow and shook his head, the ever-endearing smile that played on his lips just as confident as ever. _'Everyone makes mistakes, even the great and powerful Miles Broderick. He will understand. He has to. There's no way he can expect so much of you. You've been home-schooled; kept away from the world for seventeen years. On top of adjusting yourself and your mind to being around people your own age, attending school for seven hours a day, sitting in a classroom and working with a multitude of different subjects and materials, he also expects you to make perfect grades your first semester? That's absolutely absurd, Luna.'_

As his voice faded from my chain of pessimistic thoughts I stared listlessly at the green-teal cravat tied around his neck, trying to decide if his valid point was refreshing enough for me to accept.

"You really think so?" Ah, these words actually came out. My subconscious was convinced.

"I do. And in the meantime we'll work on studying strategies. I'll help you get these grades up, don't worry. We can study together in our field and during lunch."

I looked down at my idle hands mid-nod, twisting the ring around my finger and reading the engraved words each time they passed over the top. My gaze fixed up at Lysander again and he touched his thumb appreciatively to my cheek with a sincere smile. Narrowing his eyes down to my height and filling my heart with overwhelming security, I couldn't even remember why I'd been so upset in the first place. _'I won't let you fall, Luna. I promise. Trust me, okay?'_

_'I do trust you. I always will.'_

My ring hardly left my finger since the moment Lysander slipped it on. I was reluctant to take it off while I showered or slept and wore it proudly for all to see any chance I got. Father made a few wise cracks about it, but after assuring him that it was 'just an accessory' (a downright lie) he left it alone.

Brooke and Rosalya just couldn't get enough of my adorable Christmas stories, and Brooke was able to counter them with snippets from her own vacation with Castiel. I always felt guilty gushing in front of Rosalya, but it really didn't bother her. Being with Leigh for so long she appreciated her freedom to the fullest extent. It was great to be back in the company of our friends, and I was appreciative for their ability to completely ease my mind.

For the rest of the week I miraculously managed to hide my grades from my father. I just _couldn't _bring myself to show him, no matter how many times Lysander reassured that 'he would understand if I chose my words right'. Finding the perfect words was something that came naturally to Lysander. Me? Not always the case.

Father was home-schooled as a child, too. He'd never dealt with the schedules of public school, but I was still surprised when he didn't expect my grades in his hand the day they were released. Figuring that it might have slipped his mind all together, I was testing him, trying to see exactly how long I could get away with hiding my inglorious test results.

When Friday rolled around, I again considered myself the luckiest girl in the world. It was beginning to look as though I _might_ get away with keeping these grades to myself and working extra hard to conjure up some good ones for father to see. I'd just have to continue to play my cards right.

Normally Lysander and I would be together until the sun went down, but today father got off work in time to pick me up, and he _insisted_ that I let him. As disappointing as it was to miss out on Lysander, this was me folding my cards to avoid the risks. I was willing to do whatever it took to get on father's good side, just in case.

Father was oddly quiet in the car, his mind firmly sealed shut. The soft buzz of the radio was the only noise to drown out whatever tension floated in the air between us. I was instantly paranoid.

_Oh God, he knows..._

When we finally got home I felt the strong urge to hide away in my room long enough for father to forget that he even had a daughter. I'd never done much to land myself in trouble growing up, but I knew better than anyone that he had a temper that was better to avoid.

Little things were blocking me from my room. My laundry sat folded on the couch, and the breakfast plate that I'd left out this morning needed to get to the dishwasher. All I wanted to do was run up the stairs to safety.

I was like an antelope. Everything seemed peaceful on the plains of Africa, but something just wasn't right. There was an unsettling ambiance settling on my shoulders; like the lion was watching me from the tall grass, ready to pounce.

Whenever I found myself glued to one of those nature shows on the Discovery Channel, I'd always root for the antelope. Poor things never see it coming.

_Run, little antelope, run away! Don't you see that lion behind you?_

I didn't make it up to my bedroom at all. I didn't even make it past the kitchen counter before I was ambushed.

"_So Luna_, I saw on the school website today that midterm exam results have been released, along with report cards. Is there perhaps something you forgot to show me?" Father crossed his arms, tilting his head with a cocky smile.

_Oh, well you see, daddy dearest, I was exempt from taking the midterms because...reasons, and my report card burst into flames before I was even able to read it. There were no back up copies, but the teachers tell me that I did just fine._

"Silly me...yes, I've um, got them in here somewhere..." My excuses were all about as bad as a baseball to the neck, and I choked at the last second. Digging through my bag, my fingers trembled as they fished through each piece of paper, my eyes unable to focus on any of them. Father walked through to the kitchen and ran his hands under the faucet, giving me the perfect opportunity to pull out my grades and place them on the kitchen counter.

"There they are! Now if you'd excuse me I'm going to go change into something more comfortable..." I couldn't have sprinted for the stairs faster, hoping that it would save me from the initial shock and that he'd reprimand me when he cooled down, instead.

_No, that would just be too good..._

"**Luna Avery Broderick**, _where do you think you're going_?!" Father's booming voice punctured my eardrums and I stopped in the middle of the staircase, biting hard to my lower lip and shutting my eyes as tight as I could.

_Oh father, I see you've stumbled upon my grades..._

I turned on my heel and slowly crept down the stairs. Father held my report card in his hands; his eyes sliced into mine like the edge of a razor.

"Explain this." He smacked it down onto the counter top. "_Now_."

"I...I couldn't focus."

_Ouch, was that in the script that Lysander had given me? _

"Because of Lysander..."

"No! No, it's not because of Lysander..." I was scrambling to remember everything Lysander said but the words weren't there. They'd taken off in all sorts of dizzy directions under the burning glare of the spotlight.

_Distracting myself by trying to figure out how to convince father that I wasn't distracted...yes, someday I'd make a fine lawyer. I can talk my way out of anything!_

"T-the public school has been challenging. I-I'm still adjusting. The curriculum is different, and it's really hard. I'll do better this semester, I promise. "

"I see. That's funny, because from where I stand you seem perfectly adjusted to me. Tell me, when you and Lysander are spending countless hours in the library after school studying, what are you _really_ doing?"

_Oh God, what do I tell him? I'm still no good at this lying thing..._

I closed my mind tight and tried to conjure up a suitable excuse. "We um, we study. I guess we just didn't study those classes hard enough."

"God dammit, Luna! Tell me the_ fucking_ truth!" He smacked his hand on the counter again and I jumped back, startled by his sudden outburst. My lip quivered; I was afraid. I'd never seen him so angry before.

Lying hurt. I hated looking him in his eyes and lying, but I had no other choice. He wouldn't allow me to spend time with Lysander if he knew we were sneaking out into the woods by ourselves, and I _couldn't_ lose that.

"We're _just _studying, father...maybe sometimes we get distracted. I'm sorry..."

Father's mind was blocked, but practically every emotion he was feeling was written all over his face. Shame, disappointment, anger, guilt...

"I've been _much _too lenient with you, Luna. I've given the freedom to do whatever you want and now it's reflecting in your school work. God, I'm so disappointed in you. _This_," he held up my report card, waving it angrily in my face, "is **NOT** you. I'm not going to sit here and watch you destroy your future, spending your senior year as a lovesick fuck up with your tattooed, clown of a boyfriend! That dirty_ gadje _is ruining you!"

My mouth fell open, agape and twitching for multiple reasons. Father had_ never _talked to me like this before...he'd never been so cruel. What made me the angriest though, was the way he talked about Lysander. And what was _that word? Gadje_? Did I hear him right?

As I tilted my head to think about it, father bit his lip, as if he'd said something truly terrible that he instantly regretted. He cussed under his breath and shook his head to himself.

"W-what does that mean?"

I should've been groveling, apologizing and begging his forgiveness, but I honestly couldn't help myself. What was he calling Lysander?

"Go to your room. Now. I don't want to see you for the rest of the night. You're grounded for the weekend. _Strike two_, Luna." Father cryptically avoided all eye contact, shifting his stare to the wall behind me.

I wasn't in the position to argue with him anymore and should've just accepted my punishment but I didn't budge._ 'Everyone makes mistakes, father. Even you, I'm sure.'_

Father's look of indifference was trying. I'd let him down, hurt him, even. His only daughter couldn't even pull herself together long enough to pay attention in school.

Maybe I _was_ a 'fuck up', but Lysander was none of those things, even if I had no idea what one of them even meant. Just the way he said it, with so much hate and disgust...there was no way it defined Lysander. I made a mental note to Google it later, but for now I was still too busy wallowing in my self-pity.

At least Apollo was happy to see me. Ever since I took him home and put him in a roomier cage he'd been singing, as if to express his gratitude for the space to spread his little wings.

"Hello there..." I tried to sound happy to be pouring bird food in his dish; I didn't want him to think that his beautiful little chirps didn't cheer me up. As much as I loved his 'Welcome Home Luna!' song, there wasn't much that could quell these sickly feelings.

Nothing, except Lysander.

"I should've told him straight away..." I started immediately when I heard him pick up the phone. I needed to spit everything else all at once. If I stopped, even for a second, I'd surely be consumed by the budding tears I was choking back. "He finally saw my grades. He's so mad, Lysander. I don't know what he expects of me. Everyone makes mistakes, and I feel bad enough. I feel like a... like a f-fuck up. Just like he said." The cuss word was bitter in my mouth, and my eyelids were a weak dam. The tears started flowing, harder especially as soon as I heard his voice on the other line.

"He called you that? Oh Luna, you know that's not true. It's okay, sweet girl. It'll be okay..."

"What am I going to do without you all weekend? I ruined everything...I'm so sorry, you must be so disappointed." My breathing hitched as I blubbered on the floor like a baby. I'd never been in so much trouble before and I really didn't know how to deal with the emotions. Maybe I was being a little over dramatic, but it was all still so new to me.

"I could never be disappointed in you! This is but a minor bump in the road, my love. Of course I'll miss you this weekend, but there's always the telephone. We'll be back in school come Monday, and can start your studying. We'll prove to him that you are responsible!"

"I don't think he'll let me stay after school anymore..." I cried. Every time Lysander would say something to make me consider smiling, I'd remember something more depressing. _What if father never let me stay after school again? _

"Nonsense. All we have to do is make sure you get home before he does..."

I wiped my tears at the mention of a loophole, giggling at his imprudence. "W-what are you suggesting?"

"There's that laugh that I love..." His smile could be heard through the phone, prompting one on my own face. "I'm only proposing an idea. If he doesn't let you study after school, he wouldn't know the difference if you stayed a while with me and then made it home before he did. It'd be harmless."

"You really think we could do that?" I sniffled.

"Absolutely! Nothing is going to keep me from my girl. We'll make this work!"

How he could remain so optimistic despite all he's been through in life was inspiring to me. Whereas I was so pessimistically dramatic about every little thing, Lysander helped to even me out and keep me in reality; he always had a solution to every problem, and I even noticed that his friends looked to him for advice above anyone else. It was easy to remind myself just how lucky I was to have him.

"You know?" I laughed, a random quip popping into my head after a hour or so of talking with Lysander, "I wish I could just leave. Right now. Out my window, down the trellis and straight to you. If I could, I would. I'd sneak out. I'd love to. "

I aimlessly walked over to the window, looking down at the grass below. A wooden trellis was conveniently located right beneath the roof at my window, and I could scale it down to the ground, if I wanted to...

Lysander was chuckling at my daring words. "Is that so?"

"Yes. I'd sneak out and spend the night with you...if you'd let me." I said.

"_Spend the night with me_, hm? What exactly are you implying, Luna Broderick?" He was obviously getting a kick out of my bold ranting, laughing throughout his replies.

"I'm implying that I'd jump out my window for a chance to spend all night with you."

"You're quite the daring one tonight, aren't you?"

His soft, teasing tone of voice instantly had me biting my lip. In no time at all Lysander had managed to make me forget all about what I'd been crying over. "It's just too bad that it couldn't ever happen. But I would sneak out, if I could. You think I wouldn't..."

"Oh, I don't doubt you. I know very well that you can do anything you put your mind to."

It really was a shame that sneaking out would remain a fantasy. Lysander wouldn't actually attempt such a thing, he's too smart for that. I doubt I'd actually be brave enough to scale the house like a spider monkey and rendezvous around town with Lysander all while risking being caught, anyway.

We talked for hours before Lysander was called away by Leigh to play mannequin. Although father specifically told me to stay in my room for the rest of the night, he didn't expect me to go hungry or without a cup of tea before bed, did he?

I felt like a criminal escaping from her jail cell as I crept down the stairs. The soft whir of voices from the television indicated that father was in the living room, and I tried my best to creep into the kitchen unseen and unheard. As I boiled water for tea, I shoved as much quiet snack food as I could in my mouth all while praying that I could catch the tea kettle just before it began to whistle.

Of course, tea kettles don't have minds to read, thus rendering them completely unpredictable. I thought for sure I had a few minutes before the water was hot enough, but nothing ever goes according to plan in my life, not even making tea. The whistling noise _agonizingly_ ricocheted off of every wall in the kitchen. If father hadn't been aware of my presence already, he certainly knew of it now.

I tried to play it off, going about my tea-prep-process like I was deserving of any tea at all, and when I managed to squirt the honey into the cup without so much as a word or a cough from father in the next room, I became suspicious. Had he forgiven me already? Was he completely ignoring me?

I decided to peek from the kitchen into the living room to at least get a glimpse of his face; always an effective way to determine his mood. When the couch came into view though, I realized that father still had no idea that I'd broken out of my room at all. He was passed out cold, his mouth drooping and his arms tangled above his head. He didn't look very comfortable at all, and my daughterly instincts overtook the fact that I was supposed to be avoiding him without a second thought.

The first thing I noticed was a bottle of vodka on the floor beside the couch. Father wasn't a heavy drinker, but it wasn't out of his character, either. I was seriously hoping that he'd turned to the bottle as a relief from a hard week of work, but in the back of my mind the idea of him drinking away his disappointment in me wasn't unheard of.

It took a lot of shaking, and I probably called out his name a hundred times before he stirred from his stupor. He remained in the same position, just staring up at me.

"I wouldn't want you to spend all night out here. You look uncomfortable..." I cautiously mumbled. He shut his eyes before rising all at once, dragging a hand through his hair and nodding his head.

"Yeah, t-thank you Lulu..." His voice was scratchy and his words were slurred, but I could tell he was trying his best to act as sober as possible. I walked behind him as he stumbled down the halls to his room and watched him collapse like a rag doll, face first on his bed. He was snoring almost instantly, and after covering his body with a blanket and turning out the light I was in pursuit of my tea once more, hoping that it wasn't cold.

My tea was warm and so was my bed, and I'd been meaning to start one of the many books on my list. With Lysander texting me regularly, my favorite drink, and a good book in my lap, I should've been as relaxed and comfortable as possible. Why was I _so _restless?

The world around me was cozy, and my sore legs needed the rest after pacing back and forth in my room for hours on the phone with Lysander, but no matter how comfortable I was, it wasn't where I wanted to be.

Not at all.

I wanted to be with Lysander, _anywhere _with him. I _always_ wanted to be with him.

How was I supposed to go to sleep, knowing that when I woke up I'd _still _have to wait to see him? I was so used to spending every single Saturday with him. I couldn't stand the fact that I'd have to wait until Monday to kiss him again. My heart ached for his when we were apart. It was truly as if I was completely addicted to him.

***Clink!* **

_What was that?!_

My neck snapped in the direction of the nose; the rapping of something small and hard on my bedroom window.

_Aliens? Angry ghosts? Flying axe murderer?_

Or was it just my vivid imagination, playing tricks on me? I pulled my blankets up and gathered them in my arms as I waited to hear the sound again.

_Do I still have that baseball bat in my closet?_

***Clank!***

***Clack!***

***Click!***

Okay, I _definitely_ wasn't imagining things.

Cautiously pulling myself up from the bed, I tiptoed over to the window and fished through the layered curtains, slowly pulling them back. It took every ounce of bravery to turn myself and peer outside and when I did, I had to rub my eyes to make sure I wasn't hallucinating.

_Lysander!_

Wait..._Lysander? _What is he doing on my front lawn...at midnight?

My heart swelled, my face twisting with confusion as I looked down at Lysander, standing in my lawn directly under the window with a handful of rocks. Logic instantly bowed down to impulse and I opened the window, sticking my head out just to breathe the same air as him. He beamed up at me, his smile threatening to light the night sky.

_'But soft! What light through yonder window breaks?'_ Oh Lysander, how completely cheesy of you!

_'Oh Romeo, Romeo, what on Earth are you doing here, Romeo? If thy do see thee, they will murder thee!' _I giggled to him in my head. He knew right away that I was talking of my father, and he laughed to himself before looking back up to me.

_'I told you I didn't doubt that you would sneak out if you could. Come with me. Let's run away together; just for the night. I'll have you back before your father could ever realize you were gone... I can't miss you anymore.' _

I couldn't think of a single reason to say no. Everything about going with Lysander was exactly what I wanted and more. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that it wasn't the right choice for me to make; I needed him.

I looked to the trellis below the roof that ran all the way down to the ground, thinking of how to execute my escape. First, I'd probably benefit from changing out of my short nightgown into some actual clothes. Lysander was able to read my intentions and I rushed away quickly, flailing out of my pajamas as fast as possible and blindly plucking the first thing my fingers touched in the closet, a simple short black dress. I threw it over my head, slipping my feet into a pair of black suede booties and tiptoeing to the window again.

_Yes,_ this definitely wasn't a dream. Lysander was still there, waiting for me where I'd left him and staring up with stars in his eyes.

He read my plan of action and walked across the lawn to the bottom of the trellis, holding it in place for me as I climbed steadily out the window onto the roof.

_'Okay, I'm starting to get nervous...please be careful.' _Lysander looked up once I poised myself, both of my feet now on the shingles of the roof.

_'You underestimate me, Lysander Larkin...' _I teased, crouching down once I reached the gutter and sizing up the situation at hand.

I was only around fifteen feet above where Lysander stood, so if I were to fall, if Lysander didn't catch me it wouldn't kill me; at least it shouldn't. Unless I landed on my head, or my neck...

_'Luna, you aren't going to fall...' _Lysander eavesdropped on my thoughts in that way that I loved, adding fuel to the fire in my heart and giving me that last pinch of bravery that I needed to take the first step down.

With both of my feet secured in the trellis, I took a deep breath and Lysander coached me down, one step at a time through his thoughts. My legs shook and trembled and I took even breaths, focusing on nothing but Lysander's voice in my head and my hold on the supportive wood of the structure. In no time at all I unexpectedly felt a pair of strong arms wrap themselves around my waist, pulling me down and to the safety of the ground.

Before I could even hug or kiss him, he grabbed my hand and pulled me across my lawn, sprinting for the sidewalk at full speed. _'The sooner we get out of view, the better. My car is over here...' _

The adrenaline rush of being swept away into the night was _exhilarating;_ with each liberating stride we bounded my heart pumped louder and faster. It was like a dream, and the smile on my face only grew the further away from my house we ran.

As soon as we were in the car and he shut the door, this euphoric feeling of success and triumph rushed over my freezing body.

We'd made it...we were free_. __I'd never felt so free in all my life. _

Our chests heaved and we took a moment to catch our breath before Lysander was leaning in to capture my lips with his kiss. The moment I felt him all around me I was touching his face to make sure he was really there in front of me, pulling him in for more. I wasn't willing to stop, ever, for anything.

_'I hoped you'd come with me...'_

_'You thought I wouldn't?'_

I had to pull away to draw more air into my still-tight lungs and Lysander chuckled to himself, devouring me with his eyes from the driver's seat. "That dress looks amazing on you, Luna. I don't recall ever seeing you in it before...and I know I don't recall most things, but I think even_ I_ would remember the way it fits you. I'm almost relieved that you don't seem to wear it much...it's a little short."

I giggled nervously, realizing once the initial intoxication from the adrenaline started to wear off that I'd picked the shortest, most revealing dress that I owned; I used to wear it over my bathing suit at the beach or around the house when it was really, really hot. It was exceedingly ironic that I'd grab it out of every other article of clothing that I owned, because tonight was _really, really cold_. The blood rush of sneaking out had warmed me before, and now the heat still lingering in Lysander' car was enough to protect me until we stepped out into the harsh cold again. Lysander was right though, it _was _short, and I was blushing every single shade of humiliated as I thanked him softly, tugging at the skirt in an attempt to cover myself.

"Honestly, I'm quite embarrassed that I picked this. I wasn't really paying attention and grabbed the first thing that I touched. I feel indecent... I'm sure if I stood out on the curb there I'd have people pulling up and asking for prices..." _Did I really just say that? _

Lysander couldn't help but to burst into laughter, shaking his head from side to side. "Oh, stop it! You make even a dress so short look classy and elegant. Any other girl just wouldn't pull it off, but_ you _in that dress is something completely different. You look..._irresistible_." He bit his lip, a warm tint of red rising to his cheeks.

Lightheaded and reeling, I found myself under the spell of his eyes as they burned on me. Even though it felt like I'd known him my whole life he still had the power to melt me into a dribbling, tipsy mess. I was in danger of drowning in him and switching my gaze to the floorboard, I smiled when I heard Lysander laugh, his thoughts just as dizzy as mine.

"So...where to, my love?" He placed both hands firmly on the steering wheel, straightening his posture as he kept his eyes on me still.

Honestly, I had no idea where to go from here. My unwise choice of clothing would make it hard for me to enjoy trudging through the foot of snow on the ground, and everywhere else was closed. Either way, no matter where we ended up, even if we never left this spot, this was surely just the beginning of quite possibly the best night of my life.

* * *

**A/N: Hooray for sneaking out and short, sexy lil' black dresses! What kind of mischief can Lysander and Luna possibly get into after dark? Any predications?**

**The plot is just getting started, and I'm seriously SO excited to shake things up! A whole 'lotta crazy is coming your way. Are you ready? **

**Thank you guys for everything. Your amazing reviews are what keeps me smiling every day! :) xoxo**


	24. Chapter Twenty Three

**A/N:** A special thanks to Gossip Girl, who reminded me that I've never given my awesome readers any cool shout outs or anything! Well, that ain't gonna do! Nope! We're changing that. :) This is a chapter of many firsts, starting with my first shout out session. Yay! :D

**A big, huge, fluffy and warm and chocolatey THANK YOU to:**

Binaryguppy, Seraph's Blade, Blueberry Blossoms, cookiemonster222, Gossip Girl, ZorraVixen, fairytalerox654, GermanDelights, SunshineDarling, Iziz00, Renee1804, Lazy Hero, LaylaGreene, yeracheal, Moegan123, Bianca Bonami, Lcookies, Core. of. the. cookie. McKenna Troy Evans, Miluka, sunnyfunnychoc, MyMoonMaiden, Sakina77, Saplilpap, .geo, I'mafluffyidiot, Ebony, SageHope, Hiyaexclaimationpoint, AliceXxX, Dark Wizard, rawrmas, Drkness'sDaughter, elise1999, Cloud, Dancer2234, Ivyprincess, Shadow Wolf-99, MsAsumness, SarcasmIsMyNativeLanguage, . .Tattoo, moriahlatham, and all of you silly ninja anonymous guest reviewers!

Thankyouthankyouthankyou SO MUCH! I wish I had the time to personally PM every one of you after every single chapter. You're ALL not only crazy-nice in your reviews, but also like, the coolest people ever after the fact. I think it's the fandom. Us...My Candy Lovers? XD (Do we have a thing for that?) … anyway, whatever we are, we're all pretty awesome. :)

I tried to get most everyone who has really been following the story. If I forgot you, it's **NOT** because I don't love you (because I doooo.) it's because I don't know where I left my glasses, I never sleep, and my vision is terrible without my glasses. XD If I forgot you, just let me know and I'll give you an extra special shout out next time. :D

* * *

**Warning: Mildly suggestive adult themes, but nothing too crazy. Oh, and a pitiful Exactlyamanda attempt at original poetry, annd another huge A/N waiting for you at the bottom because I love you! ;D Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Three: Human Nature**

"Well, unfortunately we can't go to our world tonight. It's fifteen degrees; you'd freeze in a minute..." Lysander stated, keeping his eyes on the desolate road as we moved along; destination unknown.

"Hmm...w-we could go to the shop...and play dress-up? I don't know!" I was just as clueless; my mind was having a hard time focusing on anything but the fact that I'd just_ climbed out my window _to be with Lysander. Luna-of-the-past would've been so disappointed in her future counterpart. And probably a little jealous...

"That's a good idea, but I don't have a key, and Leigh is out tonight...on a date or something. He may not come home."

"Really? Why not?"

Lysander snickered to himself. "Leigh and I have different definitions of chivalry. He hasn't been out on a date in a long time, but in the past he's found it proper to escort girls that he barely knows to their houses for the evening, if you catch my drift..."

"Oh, I see..." Once I 'caught his drift' I acknowledged it with a coy giggle, my eyes wandering around Lysander's spotless car for a clue. _Where in Amoris could we go? Somewhere that we can be warm, and together?..._

When I noticed a black canvas wallet on the center console, a smile parted my lips and I reached for it. _'Oh! I want to see your license picture!_

_'I must warn you, it's not very attractive...' _Lysander's eyes never left the road, and I watched his face turn red and flush.

_'Nonsense. I'm sure you look-' _My train of thought stopped when I flipped open the wallet...

Lysander had straight, black hair and brown eyes when he was sixteen?

**LEIGH ATTICUS LARKIN **...Oh, this is Leigh's wallet!

"Wait, that's Leigh's wallet?" Lysander looked conflicted as he turned his head, pulling to a stop sign and extending a hand to take it.

"Yep, do you have similar wallets?" I chuckled as I studied the picture of a gawky, youthful version of Leigh, his hair not nearly as groomed, and his now-clear face flecked with acne.

Lysander plucked it from my hands, shaking his head. "We've no _idea _where this thing has been..."

I kept laughed, watching as he glanced inside and tisked disapprovingly. "He'll probably be home earlier than expected..."

Placing the wallet in the front cup holder, he modestly cleared his throat as we rolled down the road, his house now visible in the distance. I felt the idea pop into his head and was saying yes before he could even ask.

"We c-could go to my house. I mean, I know it's l-late, but it'll be warm, and we can laugh at all of my embarrassing middle school notebooks...if you'd like."

It was the only logical thing to do. There wasn't really any other option... In all honesty, though, I found myself_ completely thrilled_ about _everything_. The thought of going to Lysander's house, being in his bedroom, _at this hour_, caused ruthless butterflies to mercilessly start twirling and spinning in the pit of my stomach.

'_I thought you'd never ask...I'd love to!' _My zeal sparked a fire in our minds, and I shifted my stare to indulge in his burning grin from the driver's seat.

We were pulling in his driveway promptly after making the decision, and he parked the car in front of the garage, hitting the button velcroed to his visor. The headlights reflected off of the glossy black Mustang parked inside; just as Lysander had suspected, Leigh was home early.

Making our way through the garage and to the dark, empty kitchen my eyes fell to the counter on an familiar-looking wallet that sat on the sleek laminate. On vibrant white printer-paper, Leigh had scribbled a note, his curly handwriting in eye-catching purple Sharpie.

**I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that you're just now getting back from being somewhere scandalous with Blondie.**

**Am I right? ****Oh, I totally am, aren't I? Ow ow! **

**I don't care what you say, I'll unleash a terrible plague of dust upon this residence, and then I'll plant my dirty, sticky fingerprints on everything you've ever loved if I don't at least get a quick rundown tomorrow!**

**Oh la la! My little ninja is growing up! ****(I'm gonna feel reeeeally bad if you got kidnapped...)**

**Anyway, it seems we've swapped wallets again, which I'm not even mad about. My 'date' was really annoying and I wouldn't have needed it anyway... I'm old now and just want to sleep for three days which is what I'm attempting to do now. **

**Since I assume you'll be out late (you saucy little harlot!) ****I won't bother filling the pillowcase with paperweights to beat you with in the morning. ****You can meet me down at the shop whenever...just as long as**** Luna didn't wear you out too much! (Okay, I'm done. Don't hate me.)**

**Sweetest dreams, little brother of mine! **

**Your favorite,**

**Leigh**

It was a good thing that my reading speed could compete with Lysander's, because as soon as I finished skimming from behind his shoulder he grabbed it, crumpling it in his hand and throwing it straight in the garbage can.

_'He's so inappropriate...' _Lysander thought, rolling his eyes and placing Leigh's wallet on the counter, rightfully claiming his back.

I couldn't help but to let a few cautious giggles escape from behind my tongue. I knew that Leigh wasn't really some perverted weirdo, he just always went out of his way to give his younger brother a hard time... Lysander never_ really_ minded, anyway. It was kind of adorable.

'_I don't know, I find him amusing!'_

_'Don't tell him that...you'd feed his monstrous ego!' _Lysander tried to stifle his laughter, '_his humor can get pesky, especially when you've had the pleasure of dealing with it your whole life. I do love the creep, though...and as much as I dislike admitting it, he amuses me some, too. Just a little, though; only sometimes.'_

Leigh was definitely blunt, but his humor was just.._.him_. I could tell that laced among all of the embarrassing comments was unconditional love, and a need for involvement in his younger brother's life. He was clearly a wonderful brother, and being around Lysander so much made me start to feel as though Leigh was somewhat like a brother to me, too. Deep down, I knew that no matter what, if Lysander or I ever needed anything, Leigh was the type of person who'd bend over backwards to help.

My eyes floated across the spotless, never-used pots and pans that hung from the rack above the island, and after adorably straightening a few of the magnets on the refrigerator to calm his obsessive compulsiveness, Lysander coyly knotted his fingers through mine.

_'Shall we head to my bedroom then? As not to wake Leigh...h-he's a light sleeper; much unlike myself.'_

_'You're a heavy sleeper?'_

That's what Leigh must've been referring to with the 'pillowcase full of paperweights' comment. ..._Oh, that is just brutal! I sincerely hope that has never actually happened...to anybody! Let alone my Lysander..._

Lysander was trying to muffle his laughter upon hearing my dramatic thoughts; a good sign, seeing as they hadn't triggered any post-traumatic flashbacks.

_'No, no...it's not that bad. Leigh makes jabs at it all the time, not that I don't deserve them. I can certainly sleep. Let's just say, you could run a freight train carrying a brass band, accompanied by a chorus of jack hammers through my bedroom and I probably wouldn't notice. If not for my internal alarm clock and Leigh's ability to drag me out of bed when he has to, I'd sleep through my entire life; just another one of my fun-filled curses! Goodness, how many is that now? Have you been keeping count?' _He giggled to himself, turning to meet my shaking head.

_'I don't count any of your curses, Lysander, because you have none! Your forgetfulness is positively adorable and gives me a job to do; I enjoy being your personal assistant! And goodness, you must have such pleasant dreams if you're that hard to wake; I wish I could sleep as soundly! A fly could sneeze and I'll be sitting up in bed! You should know better than to consider telepathy a curse anymore; the headaches that come with it? Yeah, we could certainly do without those, but that's it!'_

Lysander couldn't hold his smile back, and wrapped his arms around me, planting a sweet featherlight kiss on my cheek before we made it to the door at the end of the hall._'You're the sweetest in the world, Lunabelle. Always making me feel like I'm something special...'_

He placed an affectionate hand at the small of my back, ushering me through and fussing with the switch on the wall so that the overhead lights were on, but comfortably dimmed so that we could adjust our eyes to the first light we'd seen in a while. Every little thing in his bedroom was just as perfect and accentuating as it had been the last time I found myself there, only this time, they were dusted in modest, half-lit shadow.

His king-sized bed seemed to be calling my name; the fluffy, cloud-like down comforter pulled atop the sheets inciting me to indulge in its heavenly softness. I backed to it, dropping down to sit, and Lysander scrunched his nose with delight as he followed my lead.

"Is that a Mako jaw?" I pointed randomly up to the medium-sized shark jaw that sat perched on his shelf among other oddities. The small, jagged teeth stuck out every which way; an identifying characteristic.

"Why, yes it is. I stumbled upon it at this terrifically bizarre antique shop when my parents dragged us to Seaside Heights, and found it quite intriguing. I don't like the idea that it had to die for me to display its jaws in my room, but I can appreciate having that little piece of the fascinating creature it was. Do you like sharks?"

"The thought of Jaws hanging around in my backyard used to frighten me, but when father forced me to watch Shark Week documentaries with him one year, I was enthralled instantly and found myself wishing that a shark would wander closer to shore so that I could get a better look. I find it interesting how for such mighty creatures, they're incredibly vulnerable and misunderstood. The biggest species of sharks only eat the tiniest things, and the Great White Shark, the fiercest of them all, is an endangered species. It's all a little ironic."

"Yes it is. Even the_ most powerful_ of beings have their weaknesses..."

"Like you?" I blurted, feeling somewhat embarrassed of my sporadic tongue.

"I wouldn't consider myself powerful..." Lysander's eyes narrowed as he regarded my statement with a smile.

"B-but you are...you know that." I pressed, my eyes dropping to the ground. He and I both knew that. Lysander was arguably the most powerful person.._.in the world?_

That was an unnerving thought; a possibility, though. He could literally _control _people; influence them to do things..._feel _things; anything he wanted them to. The fact that he chose not to use it to his advantage was amazing, and I admired his morality every single day for it.

He sighed and shook his head, his hair dynamic as it fell around his face. "I have a weakness; of course I do."

"Strawberry Poptarts..." I giggled.

"No...but they're a close second..." He turned to me giggling, cupping my face in his hands and growing solemn all at once. "Isn't it obvious? I only discovered my abilities through protecting you. I'd be happy if I never have to use it again, but I believe I'd do anything to keep you safe. You're what makes me vulnerable. It's you. You are my one, true weakness."

It was hard to believe that _I _could make him feel that way, but then, his words did mirror my exact feelings towards him. I didn't have much to offer; I wasn't strong, brave or powerful like him, but I knew I'd sacrifice anything to protect him.

I couldn't bear the distance between us, and moved my lips to his, kissing him over and over again.

I was just _so_ comfortable kissing him, just so content. I never saw a reason to stop; it was my favorite pastime. Even when we fell back onto the blankets and Lysander positioned himself on top of me, and even when I wrapped my legs around his waist, and he pressed his body closer to mine my lips _refused_ to stop. I dragged my fingers, tightening them in his hair, and he switched from my neck, chin, cheeks, and then back to my lips, his sporadic kisses driving me mad with desire. His tongue was stern, strong, and insistent against mine, and to the soundtrack of his vertiginous thoughts, I lost myself.

They were hardly detectable among the feelings and images; most everything was just a blur, but_ what I could hear_ was enough to send me to a place that I didn't think existed in my mind.

_'She's...this...so...want...can't...beautiful...'_

They were overpowering to me, touching the depths of my soul. Feeling his hair tickling my face from the closeness was my breaking point.

_I want him. I want to feel his skin against mine..._

I opened my eyes to Lysander pressing his shut before shifting uncomfortably on top of me. He ripped his lips from mine suddenly, breathing out and recoiling in the blink of an eye, leaving me just as desperately dismayed as the last time. _What have I done? Why did he stop? __I'm bad at this; bad at everything. I knew I should've researched this stuff or something...I don't have any idea what I'm doing, I've just been trusting my instincts to show me what to do, but obviously they aren't very competent._

He scooted to the other side of the bed, covering his entire face with his hands in chagrin. _'I'm__ sorry, I'm so sorry. It's not your fault, Luna; it's not you, it's me. I was about to lose control. You're just amazing...and your thoughts...'_

I reached out to him, pulling his hands from his flushing, sweating face and peering into his beautifully discomposed eyes. He had nothing to feel guilty about, and I hated that he thought he did. _'It's okay, Lysander...I wouldn't mind if you lost control; I was losing control myself...call it human nature. Why should we control ourselves?'_

Lysander looked up at me, his lips parting into a dumbfounded gape. "Luna.." He shut his eyes, shaking his thoughts straight._'No. I...I'm not going to take advantage of you, or defile your innocence. I'm not that kind of person.'_

_'Take advantage of me? What do you mean? If anything, I'm the one pressuring you right now...' _It was startling clarity. Lysander didn't want this...he didn't want me this way. I was putting too many demands on him. My stomach flipped and tumbled; I was so ashamed._'I'm sorry, Lysander...'_

At once, he scooped me up in his arms, beside himself with confusion and guilt as he struggled, fighting a thousand different thoughts in his head that I couldn't even begin to comprehend. _'No...no Luna, that's not it at all! I-I'm not being all the way honest with you. It'd be impossible for you to pressure me, because...I've always wanted you.'_

He was slowly blinking away the doubt, and I watched on, just as confounded as he was.

_'...It's been difficult for me to admit; I'd always thought myself above such thoughts...but I can't help myself. You make me so weak. God, you have no idea how bad I want you as close to me as I can get you. The things I'd do...' _He pressed his eyes shut, running a crestfallen hand through his messy hair.

_Oh my God...what did he just say?_

I caught my quivering bottom lip with my teeth to quell the cyclone of imperative desire as is unfurled, whipping around and around and then pooling in the pit of my stomach. These feelings were nerve-wraking, new, and exotic to me, but there was also the eerie presence of solace in the room. As if everything was meant to be, and always would be.

His intense stare singed my skin behind his wild, whisked bangs, and he shook his head, uttering a brutish laugh from under his breath. _'Luna, you're making it very hard for me to behave right now...looking at me like that.'_

I never let my eyes leave his and leaning in closer, breathing out with a quiet giggle. _'I don't want you to behave anymore. I don't want you to control yourself. I just want you, exactly how you should be.'_

From that moment, our excuses were no longer relevant. We followed each others thoughts and our kisses got us lost, propelling us into a manic stupefaction that destroyed each and every inhibition until we just couldn't hold back anymore; we just couldn't control ourselves. Our combined weaknesses made us strong, _so strong._

There wasn't so much as a fragment of doubt in my mind...Lysander was _the one. _He was the only _one_ in the whole world; the only _one_ in a crowd of a hundred billion people that I'd ever see. It was obvious that we were soul mates, and if I didn't know anything else, that much I knew for sure.

We already knew deep down that this was it; we only wanted each other and there simply wasn't anyone or anything else. We knew we were going to be together forever, and feeling his bare chest, his heartbeat against mine, his breath on my neck, watching him fall to pieces before my very eyes as we let down every last wall dividing us was the most incredible experience of my life. My heart was inspired, and discovering a way to be as close to him as physically and mentally possible, I was completely addicted.

Only us; it was all that existed, all that was real in the world. Everything else, every thought and worry, everything that didn't coincide with the love that we felt for each other just vanished.

To explain the experience would be impossible. I've heard that it's great for everyone, but for Lysander and I, two people so in love, with the ability to lace our thoughts together to create one whole indivisible concept, it was beyond that. It was beyond anything thought possible...I had no idea what we were capable of. I didn't think it was possible for me to love him any more than I already had, but wrapping up every feeling we'd ever felt for each other into one bold decision, I was falling for him over and over again.

_After all was thought and done,_ I found myself lying across from Lysander, my head on his pillow and my eyes drowning in his. We talked and talked of random things, reflecting on our time together. Time had stopped long ago, and it hadn't occurred to me that I'd _ever_ have to go home. I wanted to stay in his bed until forever.

Eventually, we recalled the real world that we'd come from, and he reached out for his phone on the nightstand while I prayed that I wouldn't have to rush home just yet. It _seemed_ as though I'd been in his bed for hours, days...longer, maybe? ..._Gosh, what year is it? _

"Oh, it's only two thirty! That's certainly good news!" He placed his phone back down on the nightstand and turned to me with this adorable corkscrew grin on his glowing face, _and boy, did I love him._

"Wow, that's it?" I'd been expecting worse, and was most pleasantly surprised indeed.

"Yes, thankfully our night is not over just yet. What time do you think we ought to get you home, though?"

"Just as long as I'm there before my father wakes up. He did have a few drinks last night... Maybe five...just to be safe."

Lysander liked that answer, and he pulled me closer for a peck on the cheek. My mind kept on replaying the events over and over again, and I couldn't help but to giggle as I remembered something, while Lysander nuzzled me affectionately with his smile. "Do you think Leigh will notice?"

"Notice what?" He glanced in my head and sighed with a chuckle of defeat, _'That we had to call upon his wallet after all? Probably. I'm not concerned, though. I'll deal with the awkward questions tomorrow. It's our time, now.' _

He laid back down, pulling me along with him, prompting me to rest my head on his bare chest. The steady beat of his heart crept through my ears like the perfect melody, and I smiled while he gently ran his fingers through my hair. His soothing touch on my scalp was quick to alert me of how worn out I was; a part of me didn't even want to fight it, though I knew I had to. Lysander kissed my head, a composition of thoughts fluttering through his beautifully sophisticated mind before he opened his mouth, and began to mutter in soft, calming almost-monotone.

"_I never was struck before that hour, with love so sudden and so sweet; her face it bloomed like a sweet flower, and stole my heart away complete. My face turned pale, a deadly pale, my legs refused to walk away; and when she looked what could I ail, my life and all seemed turned to clay."_

I was snapping my fingers as soon as he finished, "First Love, by John Clare! Oh, I just _adore _Clare!"

Instead of gasping breathlessly, swooning right there in a pile of feelings like any other girl would at his brief, dashing tribute to the intellectual beauty of Victorian romanticism, the poetry-nut in me beat me to it; but Lysander seemed to appreciate my eager, immediate recognition as he gazed down at me.

"That's right, my Lunabelle. Gosh, Clare is still so underrated, but I surely appreciate him; even more now that I can truly understand those longing tones. By now I've experienced them all firsthand..." He traced my jaw line with a lazy finger, a sleepy smile playing on his lips, "Your turn..."

_Oh, a challenge?_

"Hmm..." I propped myself up on his chest, skewing my mouth to the side and trying to blink away the tiredness at the corners of my eyes, letting the very first poem that came to mind just fall off my tongue.

"_Lay your sleeping head, my love, human on my faithless arm; time and fevers burn away, individual beauty from thoughtful children," _

I had to let out a long, draw-out yawn, and did so as I nestled my head back down on Lysander's chest, "_and the grave proves the child ephemeral. But in my arms 'till break of day, let the living creature lie, mortal, guilty, but to me, the entirely beautiful..."_

"Auden, Lullaby; ever the classic..." Lysander abruptly breathed in a yawn as well, pulling his arms around me, "-goodness, just hearing it made me sleepy! As much as I really, really don't want to, we should probably sit up, so that we don't fall asleep. That would be quite...bad."

I didn't even _want to imagine_ how 'quite bad' that scenario played out in my head, but still, at just the _mere suggestion _of getting up I found myself only resting into his chest more. I _really_ didn't want to move _just yet_, and he wasn't helping, only tightening his hold on me.

_'Will you recite just one more poem for me? And then we'll get up...' _I shifted my flickering eyes to squint up at him, and he still wore that worn-out, lopsided grin on his face as he met my gaze.

_'Just one more, hm? I think that can be arranged. You know I can't say no to you.'_

_'Thank you, Lysander. I love when you speak poetry. I just love it.' _The second I closed my eyes, I was slapped with a powerful punch of exhaustion, but still kept my ears wide open as Lysander cleared his throat; the vibrations from his chest tickling my face.

"_Something that I'd never known, __was that I'd never been. __For when you looked into my eyes, __I felt my life begin. __Starless, dark, an enchanting eclipse; __they whisper sweet echos to mine. __The secret we share will stay safe in my heart, __your delicate voice in my mind. __You touched my wings; I leapt up, took flight; __though my feathers weren't foreseen to soar. __Who says you can't hold all the moon and her light? __I held her for hours, I'm sure. __Flickering starlight laced through your hair, __in your heart you're as free as a bird. __You're the one who hears down to the depths of my soul, __while the others just hear the words."_

I was _deliriously_ tired...either that, or somehow I'd gone mostly deaf _and_ was no longer telepathic...because how I managed to completely miss the significance of the touching words he recited in soft, raspy mutters, was beyond me. When he stopped talking and leaned in to place an especially tender kiss on my forehead, I was all smiles, my cheek still pressed firmly against his chest.

"_Mmmm_, I _loved_ that one. I don't think I've ever heard it in my life. Who_ was_ that?" I mumbled as he kept his fingers coursing through my hair and on my back.

Lysander chuckled modestly to himself for a moment. "T-that was just something I uh, threw together..."

"_You_..._threw that together?_ Like...just now, _on the spot?"_

His laughter kept on; he sounded just as spent and delirious as I was. "No, no...my freestyle could make _that_ look like a masterpiece. Truth be told, I have a bit of 'Luna literature' to speak of. Just now, I kind of combined fragments of what I could recall off the top of my head. I'm quite certain you'd think me madly obsessed if knew just how much I loved writing about you."

"Oh, Lysander, no. No, I love writing about you, too. And that...that was beautiful. God, you're so beautiful." I moved my lips to his, cupping his face with my hands as I kissed him over and over, burying my face in the crock of his neck. He captured me in his arms, and at that point, I didn't know how he expected me to ever get up.

_'I just want to lay with you for a little while longer...I'm not ready to get up.' _Lysander's mind admitted as he rested his cheek at the top of my head, breathing in and out steadily. _'I really, really don't want you to go. I never want to lay in this bed alone, ever again after all that's happened in it tonight...'_

_'I don't want to go, either. Could you make my father think that he doesn't mind me sleeping with here with you every single night?' _I was kidding, of course. Kind of. Not really. No, no...I wasn't kidding. I was exhausted.

He kissed my head again, his strong biceps tightening around me._ 'I would, believe me. Especially right now...but...you know we shouldn't. That would be wrong; so very wrong. It's not who we are.'_

_'I know that...I know. I just...I can't wait until this is my life, every single day...y-you know?'_ Thoughts were starting to become harder to string together, and I didn't realize how tired I'd actually become.

_'M-me either, Luna. P-promise me something?' _

_'A-anything...wh-what is it?' _My eyelids were heavy. I couldn't pry them open, even if I tried.

_'After gradu...after we...graduate, w-will you...move in with...me?'_

'_Oh...oh yes, yes of course...that would be...a...amazing...I'd love...that so...much.' _I loved him so much, and his down comforter was like sleeping in, on, and around a cloud. Everything was devastatingly comfortable.

_'We'll...hold each other every...single night. Just...like...this. _

_'Just...like...this. Yeah.'_

* * *

**A/N: Goodnight Lysuna! Sweet dreams, you two! D'aww, aren't they just precious? ;D**

**Here, I'll distract you with some random words. :)**

Hi. I can't poetry. I can _appreciate_ poetry all day long, but that's the extent of that. I may have done like, everything wrong (lines, rhyming, what is this I don't even?) I'd LOVE to be able to tell you, "Yeah, I totally just threw that together. No big deal." but no. Nope. I spent way more time than I'm willing to admit trying to put myself in Lysander's boots and successfully make poetry happen, and it just...no. xD

Ah, Lysander's poetry would be so so amazing if he were real, though. Annnnd if he were real he would_ also_ be tied up against his will in my basement right now, so let's all take a moment to be glad thaaat's not a thing.

**-Okay, next order of business!**

At some point you will discover a OWK one-shot, derived from this chapter, coming soon to the MCL achieve near you. It will be** rated-m** for reasons. Lots of them. xD

If this chapter was able to convey what we know it needed to, and you're just waiting on the next chapter (aka: you're not dying to know what actually went down in the suggestive-middle-part, there.) ...than you probably don't want to read this one-shot, unless you do. xD It won't contain and any new or exciting news for the actual story, I'm only publishing it because of my... "_colorful_ imagination." (The kind that it's okay_ not_ to have.)

_Annnnd_ this concludes the longest author's note evar. Sorry. xD

_As always, thank you so much for your support/reviews. __I've got some big stuff coming that I can only hope you'll like!_

**-Exactlyamanda **

**xoxoxo**


	25. Chapter Twenty Four

**Chapter Twenty Four: Pressing Pennies**

* * *

The conditions had to be near-perfect if I wanted to sleep through the night; a pea under the mattress would probably agitate me. In this case, _everything _was perfect..._except _for the bright lights that perpetually crept through my eyelids. The only thing that kept me from jumping up and turning them out was the soothing lullaby that I heard all around me.

**Thump... thump thump... thump thump... thump thump...**

Lysander's heartbeat...that's what it was. My ear was pinned up against his heart, his chest filling the role of my new favorite pillow. I would've been blissfully content with going back to sleep in his arms if it hadn't been for that pesky light...

_Wait, why was I in Lysander's arms again? _

_Ah yes, that's right!_

At first I was smiling, invigorated as I recalled each and every beautiful detail of our night together. Nothing out of the ordinary, right? Just another day in paradise!

_Except for the fact that I'm not supposed to be here...at all._

Everything rushed back to me at once and I sprang up, breathing into my palms and trying not to scream.

_Oh my God...we fell asleep._

Father was _already_ furious with me; I had_ already_ made a mistake with my grades, I was_ already_ grounded, he _already_ didn't trust me and certainly didn't trust Lysander...why did we think this was a good idea? And if sneaking out wasn't _risky_ enough, I actually let myself fall asleep on his chest, in his room, at his house, where I'm _not_ supposed to be...at all.

_Well, I might as well just tell my father the downright, honest-to-goodness truth when I turn myself in to the authorities. There certainly won't be any denying it..._

_'Good morning, Father! Where have I been, you ask? Oh, I had a most delightful night, indeed! Lysander ravaged me, defiled my purity, stole my virtue like a thief in the night! Whatever you want to call it, we did it, and I loved every second of it! ...You've had the entire town on lock-down? Search and rescue dogs? Helicopters? I'm fine! My virginity on the other hand...'_

_...**Oh God,** what have I done?!_

In a second my eyes were open and I was sitting up, looking around frantically. Lysander laid fast asleep still, his mouth agape, soft humming breaths falling from his lips. The curtains were drawn on the window, but no light shined through, and I reached for Lysander's cellphone on the nightstand to check the time.

_I'm so dead. _

_I'm grounded for an eternity. _

_Father is going to find a way to imprison me for life, I just know it. _

_Maybe I should just take a nap on the railroad tracks..._

_Or if we leave now, maybe we can get to the Mexican border before they think to follow us!_

_It's..._

_It's..._

_It's only __**4:34am?**_

My whole body expanded with my inhale and I stared at the phone, watching the time turn to 4:35, and then 4:36. I couldn't help myself from sputtering a chuckle of disbelief. _Oh my God...I'm officially the luckiest person on the entire face of the planet._

4:36am. I could work with that! There was time...my life wasn't over. This night could stay perfect; nothing was going to ruin it for me. I'd gotten away with it...with everything.

As much as I would have loved to lay back down for a while and bask in my prosperity, my luck definitely didn't need any extra pushing. I hated to admit it, but it was time to go home. First though, I had to wake my dear Lysander, who looked so peaceful it should've been a crime.

I couldn't help but to admire his innocent beauty for just a moment. He was lovely, and I tried not to giggle while I watched him dream, his slender brows raised and his eyelids flickering. I'd never tried to read dreams, but from what I understood they were extremely difficult to decipher. The conscious part of the mind was loud and spoke in volumes, while the subconscious (where we dream) hid way in the back. Instead of speaking, the subconscious weaved whimsical feelings, memories, and images together to convey thoughts.

Lysander would never fail to surprise me, though. I should've known that. His dreams were shockingly clear.

There was lots of me, of us. Echoing laughter that sounded like ours, the swaying branches of willow trees, sunshine, swollen lips, beige suede boots, rabbit-shaped-clouds and hot green tea with honey swirled together to create something beautifully abstract. There were many untenable things, as in every dream: an unusually large pineapple, an owl in a business suit...all of it was there, available to me as if it were my own.

How was this possible? Maybe it was because my connection with Lysander was so strong. At any rate, it was a wonderful thing for me to witness, and I just couldn't bring myself to wake him. Unfortunately though, I had to.

"Lysander..." I started softly, combing my fingers through the knots in his ashy, misshapen pillow-hair. He laid completely still, and after a few soft chants I started to coax him with a gentle hold on his shoulders.

"It's time to get up, sleepy head." Rattling him lightly was futile, and I shook his shoulders faster until his hair whisked around his face and his lips moved with the ferocity of my efforts.

"Lysander!"

At this point, I was calling out his name quite loudly, but still he slept on. It was only then that I remembered what he'd told me yesterday: he was _such_ a heavy sleeper, Leigh sometimes had to drag him out of bed and to the ground...

The shaking turned into tickling, and when that didn't work, I actually took a pillow and swung it to his shoulder a few times, and then to his chest, and face...nothing. Was I going to have to fill this thing with paperweights after all? It was like he'd slipped into a coma...

"Lysander, wake up!"

His eyebrows moved with my words, but it was quite obvious that he was dormant. If he wouldn't wake up, I'd have to walk home by myself. I was okay with doing that, but I knew Lysander; he'd never forgive himself even though it wasn't his fault. I had to find a way to wake him up.

I clambered over him and looked around at the clothes lying on the floor with appreciation. My dress reminded me of having to go back home, so I threw Lysander's white button-up shirt on to cover myself while I skipped across the hallway to quickly use the bathroom. His torso was so long and tall that the shirt covered me like a dress. His smell was all around me, and I never wanted to take it off.

When I walked back into his bedroom I tried my best not to stop and stare at him forever. He definitely looked just as sound as he was, sprawled out, an arm over his head, wearing only tight gray boxer briefs, the rest of him lustrously exposed. I couldn't help myself from climbing on top of him, straddling his hips and leaning down to brush my lips across his collarbone, trailing them up to his neck, and then to his lips...where I felt him come alive. His mouth twitched on mine, his hips squirming from under me. A crisp blush burnt my cheeks when I blinked and saw his kaleidoscopic eyes blinking back at mine.

_'Lunabelle...' _He gently tossed his head in the pillow, his lips tugging into a sleepy smile while his eyes examined the situation. _'Are...are you wearing my shirt?'_

I giggled and bit my lip, pulling away with a devilish smirk. _'It's quite comfortable...'_

He gazed up at me in astonishment, his mind whisking me to a place that wouldn't be clever to return tonight... although it certainly was tempting. _  
_

I kept my lip tight in my teeth and shook my head. _'Don't entice me...I think you're forgetting that I was supposed to go home...'_

"Wh-what time it is?!" Lysander exclaimed, his whole face flushed as he shot up breathlessly.

"It's not quite five in the morning. I've never been so thankful for my restlessness! Unlike you, sleeping beauty..." I told him, stifling my giggles on his cheek.

"Oh thank heavens... You truly even me out, my little early bird. I told you I was a heavy sleeper...no one's ever managed to get me up so effortlessly, though. As soon as I felt your lips on mine I was dying to kiss them back..."

"I tried everything else first! Shaking you, tickling you...I even hit you with a pillow!" I told him, crossing my arms and straightening my torso.

_'A pillow, hmm? Valiant efforts, my dear. In the end it seems you've found a truly sufficient technique...and I can't say I'm disappointed about waking in such a fashion. I must admit: wavy-haired, sleepy-eyed, naturally flawless, and wearing nothing but my favorite shirt...it's an incredible look on you.'_

His grasp wandered to my hips while a shameless smirk played on his cheeks. He narrowed his eyes into a conspicuous smolder and I was nipping at his lips hungrily in no time, relishing under his firm hands.

Anyone else would've surely accepted their limits; a responsible person draws a fine line between 'work and play', responsibility and pleasure.

Everyone else craved balance. Everyone else drew that line, separating their lives into priorities; but I _wasn't _everyone else, and maybe I _wasn't_ ready to be a 'responsible' person. Work, play; it was all the same to me, and while everyone else drew their hypothetical lines, I drew invisible ones with a lazy finger on Lysander's chest, refusing to accept the fact that I really_ had_ to get home.

Going home was work and Lysander was play. Or maybe Lysander was work _and_ play, and everything else didn't really matter at all? I liked the second option better.

I was pressing my luck like a penny on the train tracks. Thankfully though, I had a pocket full of shiny pennies to spare.

* * *

I missed when time didn't matter. When Lysander and I rolled around on what felt like a cloud and explored every inch of each other, time not only stood still...it ceased to exist. We had no sense of time, no sense of responsibility...our senses were limited to the ones that came naturally, all _six_ of them.

Time was _everything_ now, and every minute brought us closer to saying goodbye.

_'It's not goodbye, my love. Goodbye is so permanent, so abiding..." _Lysander reminded me. Always so optimistic, he had the ability to scatter bad feelings into the air like dust. When the dust cleared, I always found myself smiling.

We finally managed to coax our clothes back on and shuffle out to the car, but not without plenty of reluctance. The ride home was shorter than ever, and I could have sworn that Hydrangea Drive shrunk three sizes since we'd last traveled down it.

At 5:28am, we beat the sun. Darkness still covered Amoris, and although it was technically Saturday morning, everything still felt and looked like the dead of night. Lysander parked on the curb, and we dashed down the sidewalk to my front lawn. My heart broke when I realized that I was exactly where I had started, and that the best night of my life, as I'd rightfully assumed, was coming to an end.

Lysander turned to me, his face quietly illuminated by the light of the moon. His eyes softened, and he ran his thumb across my lower lip with a smile. _'Parting is such sweet sorrow...' _

_'There isn't anything sweet about it.' _I frowned.

His smirk made me giggle, and he cupped my face in his hands to pull me in for a kiss. _'Parting is sweet only because it brings me closer to seeing you again. Come Monday, the week will be ours.'_

_**...The week will be ours. **_

I climbed (quite literally) into bed with that notion in my head.

And Lysander wasn't lying. He never does.

* * *

Father didn't suspect a thing, and for two weeks I lived a dream.

I was a heroine, Lysander my fearless white knight, and we were writing our very own adventure, fueled by adrenaline and passion.

We worked with father's schedule, and we were sly. Everyday after school we'd run away to our world to watch clouds and climb trees, or to his house to find each other's ticklish spots. When Lysander assured me that what we were doing didn't hurt anyone, he was right. On top of our clandestine escapades, I actually managed to pay attention in class. We studied when we could, and my grades for the semester began flawlessly.

I soon found myself no stranger to scaling the trellis, and no matter what we did, no matter how much we put at risk to be together, it truly seemed as though fate was on our side because we never got caught. Not once.

Today was especially significant for me. It marked two weeks since Lysander and I took that wordless, unwritten vow of infinite devotion. For two weeks my mind had been permanently blocked from my father...there was just no way I could think around him without being caught.

Tonight also brought the promise of another Despite Chaos concert, this time an inner-city venue. It was the biggest show they'd ever landed, and a very exciting opportunity for Lysander that I wasn't going to miss for the world. Two weeks had been enough time to really focus on gathering some impressive grades to present my father, who told me that if I earned it, I could attend the concert.

Lysander dropped me off on his way to meet with Castiel and Nathaniel to prepare for the show, leaving me time to brush my hair and check myself thoroughly for visible...um, _baseball bruises, _before father got home. I was also left with plenty of time to get into the part I'd chosen to play. I wasn't much of an actress, but I'd been going out of my way to make sure that every day when father came home I was busy behaving, acting casual as ever. He didn't need any reason to suspect me for blocking my thoughts.

This evening, I'd be playing the role of _'enthralled, guiltless Whovian'_; one I hadn't tried yet, but that I'd been saving for a day like this. It was impossible for father to be in a bad mood; not when there were bow ties and British accents involved. Fishing through his DVD collection took me a minute, but finally I settled on one series and popped a random disk in. '_Gosh, there's so many! ..This is the eleventh, right? Sure, father likes him...'_

I sat crossed legged on the couch, picking a random episode and taking a deep breath. I had to get into the part, and tried to gather plenty of information to portray the correct emotions one should feel while watching Doctor Who; and boy, were there a lot of them.

_Okay, I've been sitting here watching Doctor Who for hours and I definitely know what's going on. Let's see here...there's the Doctor, obviously. He talks really fast! Oh, her hair is pretty! ...He's seriously talking so fast. Wait, what's going on? Alright, I'll just skip ahead to the next one. Whoa, confusing... Oh my, how adorable! So funny! AH! Scary! ...I like him, he's silly! Oh my God, that's so depressing... Those accents and goofy British words make everything better...' _

I was in the middle of giggling when father walked through the door, and with a quick zip, I blocked my mind. His shoes clicked on the hardwood, and he stood at the edge of the living room as I fumbled with the remote to pause it.

"Hello, sweetie!" _Was the quote really necessary? Am I trying too hard? ...I'm pathetic._

Father blew out a muffled snicker, rolling his eyes as he dropped his briefcase at the side of the armchair across from me, plopping down in a huff. "How curious... I don't think I've ever caught you watching that by yourself before."

I shrugged, "I uh, decided to give it a try; it's rather amusing."

He glanced over at the paused image on the TV and knew immediately what episode it was. I'd been skipping through the entire thing aimlessly, and I think I was at the last one on the disk. "Hm, this is the sixth disk. You've watched the entire series? Roughly ten hours, then?"

I brayed with laughter. "No, of course not!"

"Ah, I see. You're just trying to act nonchalant...is that it?"

A hard knot formed in my throat, and I shook my head, shrugged, swallowed, and blinked simultaneously "No...wh-what? I've just been skipping through a little..."

"Mhm..." He gritted his teeth, crossing his legs as he rolled his eyes with a sigh, "today marks two weeks..."

"Yes! Yes, I know, and I've got these test scores...all A's! I'm serious about improving!" I took the papers that sat beside me on the couch and leaned to hand them to father, but he ignored me. His eyes darted from the floor, to the TV and back to me.

"It's been two weeks since I've seen a single thought in your head, Luna..."

_Oh. _

"We um, we talked about this...about privacy..." I stammered as his stare narrowed in on me like a hawk's. It was as if he could _see_ my flickering heart beat.

"Yes, and not being able to see your thoughts half of the time was one thing...but ever since I reprimanded you for your grades you've been on lock-down; and you've been acting strangely casual lately, to boot. You know I'm right...I can see it in your eyes. So what is it, Lulu? What's the big secret? Living a double life as a murderous outlaw? Addicted to narcotics? Robbing convenience stores?"

"That's ridiculous!" I shouted, my entire body trembling with the sudden discharge of confrontation. I could already foresee my life ending...either way, this was not going to turn out well.

"You're quite obviously hiding something. Unblock your mind and tell me the truth..."

Pressing my eyes shut, I had no other choice. What was I supposed to do, just say no? He'd know _for sure_ that I was hiding something, then. The best I could do was to unblock and try not to blow my cover.

_Oh god...oh god...think about flowers. Flowers, and reptile monsters and the Crucible lecture in English class and popcorn...and...no, don't think about how you just got home from Lysander's house...don't think about what you were doing...and what you've been doing...oh God...he heard that, didn't he? _

Father scratched his chin, straight-faced at first while I sunk into the couch and melted into a pile of indignity. I kept my eyes on him from underneath the strands of hair that covered my flushing face. I wanted to click my heels and disappear..._anywhere but here._

"You've been having sex..." He admitted to himself, before wiping his hands over his face with a chuckle of utter disbelief. He abruptly stood to his feet and began pacing in circles, his hand on his head. I just watched on, doe-eyed and quivering; the dead silence churned the tension in the room thicker. I could feel a bead of sweat trickle down my forehead as I anticipated his next move.

"**GOD DAMMIT LUNA!" **

I flew out of my seat, scurrying to the other side of the couch and gripping the arm in absolute horror when he took his fist and drove it straight through the dry wall. I'd _never _in my life seen him do _something like that. _My eyes twitched closed from under the perspiring palms that covered my face.

"That _FUCKING_ gadje! I'll fucking kill him!"

_Wh-what did he just say?! Oh, I don't think so! _I stood up, my teeth clenched in rage, inhibitions nonexistent. "Father! Don't say such things!"

"Sit the _fuck_ down before I make you!" He took a step towards me, raising the same red, now-bloodied fist to _me _in a way that he'd never, ever done. _W-was he threatening me? _

I fell straight back onto the couch and cowered, raising my hands to protect myself as he stood over me. I was frightened, but kept my eyes on him through squinted lids. He ran the furiously idle hand through his hair, a hand on his hip as he paced a circle.

"I knew we should've never come here...you're just as _stupid _as your mother. You're going to make the same stupid fucking mistake that we did...you could be pregnant, for fuck's sake!"

I sat there shocked, shaking my head. "No...no, I'm not. I know that."

_Just as stupid as my mother..._

_The same mistake they did..._

_I'm nothing but a 'stupid mistake' to him? _

"Do you realize what _could've_ happened, Luna? They would've come here...and all I've ever wanted is to protect you from them...I've protected that _m__elalò gadje_ for you, too! Dammit, Luna!"

"_Who_ are you talking about?! What is a _gadje_?!" Tears streamed down my face in a frenzy of emotion. _Is he going crazy?_

"He's not one of us, Luna! Telepath or not, _he's not one of us!_ He's an outsider! He could be dangerous! We don't know what he is capable of!"

_Dangerous? Not one of us? What does he know? _

"Father, Lysander isn't dangerous! What are you talking about?!" I stood again, my bravery being restored for a split second.

My quick movement angered father even more, and he picked up a chair from the dining room, hurling it across the room straight towards me. I lunged back to the couch and curled up in a shivering ball as he kicked over another chair and hung his head, clutching his forehead in anguish.

"I can't believe this is what you've become. You can guarantee you're not going to that fucking concert tonight! I want you in your room, and I don't want to see you for the rest of the night until I figure out what to do with you..."

"No, father please! I'm sorry...I'll stop...please!"_ I worked so hard... the concert! Lysander! I can't miss it!_

"_Dilo chavi...porradì beshèl...lazhàv..." _Father pinched the bridge of his nose, mumbling to himself in some kind of strange tongue that made my skin crawl.

"Father..." I was frightened, especially when the translations of each word appeared in my head through his thoughts..._ foolish child. impure, shame, disgrace, immorality... _"Father...I'm sorry...please forgive me. Let me explain!" I respired through hyperventilating breaths.

"**GET OUT OF MY SIGHT, NOW!" **

I was afraid to leave the couch; to pass by him, afraid that he may reach out and lash at me, but closing my eyes and holding my breath I raced to my room, blinded by frantic cries. _Just like that, my entire world was over._ The hot, sticky tears gushed as I bounded up the stairs. I slammed my door in a fit of rage, flopping on my bed and screaming at the top of my lungs into my pillow.

_...I should've seen this coming. How could I have been so foolish? _

_How am I going to tell Lysander? He's going to be so disappointed in me! He isn't going to be able to preform tonight; he'll be devastated! I can't simply tell him through the phone...but if I just don't show up he'll be distraught! __I can't do that to him...I need him right now. I need him so badly I might just break. __I know what I have to do._

In the background, my sweet little Apollo was trying to cheer me up. It didn't matter how many songs he sang to me, though. Nothing mattered but getting to Lysander. I grabbed for my phone, trying to find her name in my contacts list through blurry vision and bubbling tears before pressing it to my ear frantically.

"Hey Boots!" Her cheerful voice sang through the line, but I couldn't smile at her use of Castiel's nickname for me. I could barely breath.

"B-Brooke..." I sputtered, before breaking down in gasping tears.

"Luna! Wh-what's the matter? Are you okay? Oh my God! Are you crying?"

"C-can you...can you come and get me early? P-please? I'll...I'll explain it all when you get here...I just need to get out." I sobbed.

"Of course, of course! I'll be right there!" Her voice was dripping with sympathy, and I heard her grab her jingling keys.

"And Brooke?" I sniffed, glancing out the window to my faithful trellis. I was thanking my mind for keeping _that _secret from father, at least. I still had a way out. He'd surely be hitting the bottle tonight pretty hard, and after successfully climbing up and down so many times there wasn't a doubt in my mind about my choice.

"Yeah?"

"...P-park the car down the street, closer to the stop sign, okay?"

* * *

**HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY :)**

**A/N: Hello all you beautiful people :) Sorry if there's an abundance of mistakes and/or things that don't make sense. I just got my wisdom teeth removed yesterday and so I'm not all the way there, but I tried! xD**

**I'm so glad you guys are still liking it. I got some CRAZY coming at you next chapter, and the chapter after that! I'm excited!**

**Blaaah, so here's the deal: if you read What You Do to Me, you may remember that as soon as I completed it I had to take a quick break before starting this story because I was moving across country. Well, this monday I'm moving BACK! Woooo! (Only not really.) **

**My wisdom teeth surgery has gotten me out of packing and I'm on bed rest for a little while because I'm a big baby, so HOPEFULLY I'll be able to get one more chapter out before Monday. If not, I PROMISE I'll be publishing as soon as I can, but it might be just a few extra days. :P **

**These next two chapters are extremely important, so I want to do them justice!**

**THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE MOST AMAZING PEOPLE EVER.**

** I LOVE YOU ALL BE MY VALENTINES PLZ&THNKUZ?!**


	26. Chapter Twenty Five

**A/N: Hello my beautiful friends! :D I MISSED YOU!**

**Sorry this took me so long! My cross-country move is OVER, and I'm back. Yaaay. I was having withdrawals! D: **

**I hope you guys enjoy this just as much as I enjoy yooou! :)**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Five: His Weakness**

Those illustrious blue eyes twinkled from the Jeep's rear view as I ran down the sidewalk, throwing my knapsack over my shoulder mid-sprint. I never got a chance to wash my 'Team Lysander' outfit, so the short navy dress, cream-colored scarf and beige cardigan that I'd worn to school would have to suffice, my trusty boots launching me straight to freedom.

The second I clambered up onto the polyester seat beside Brooke I was searching for the seat belt, tugging it over my lap frantically as she took the hint and sped off down the road in a cloud of dust. Before delivering my long-winded explanation, I had to catch my breath.

"You okay?" She asked, watching as I ran shaking fingers through my hair; the rush of adrenaline had made me woozy.

I nodded my head, pulling my sleeves up nervously over my palms. "I am now...thank you so much, Brooke. You have no idea..."

"Of course, I was getting bored just sitting around waiting, anyway! So, is it...your dad?" She tilted her head, simmering from behind the wheel with curiosity. If the initial panicked-phone-call hadn't struck a chord in the ever-wondering mind of Brooklyn Taylor, my intrepid climb down the trellis had to have piqued something.

"Yeah...he uh, read my...my phone messages, and found out about all the sneaking around I've been doing with Lysander." I managed, trying to de-telepath the story the best I could.

Her eyes widened on the desolate road and she drifted into the median a bit. "Oh God..._Just _the sneaking around?"

I shook my head with a sigh. "He knows _everything_."

"Ouch..." She winced. The mere thought of her parents knowing 'everything' about her own relationship sent shivers down her spine. "How'd he take it?"

"He threw a chair at me." I twiddled my thumbs; the words coming out of my mouth didn't sound quite right_. Yes, Father did do that, didn't he?_

I tried telling myself that the sole purpose of my great escape was to see Lysander, but the real reason I fled was harder than that to admit. I didn't want to believe that my father would even think to hurt me...but for the first time in my life, I was secretly frightened of the one person that had always kept me safe.

Brooke gasped, turning to me with an open frown. "He _threw a chair_ at you? Oh my

God, he didn't hurt you, did he? Did you tell Lysander?"

I waved my hands in objection; I didn't want Brooke to get the wrong idea. "No, no...he'd never actually hurt me...at least I don't think he would. I'm supposed to be grounded for like, an eternity, but I had to get to Lysander. I haven't told him yet; I don't want him to worry until I can explain to him that I'm fine."

"So, if he finds out that you're gone...?"

"He's not going to." I interjected, the mere thought like a knife to the heart as I took a rattling breath.

"He said he didn't even want to see me for the rest of the night, so his wish is my command. I even tucked a pile of clothes under the blankets on my bed to make it look like I'm lying there asleep. It's pretty convincing!" I chuckled unnervingly; rubbing my arms and watching Amoris fade away into the background as we merged onto the highway, "even if it wasn't, though...I don't think he really cares enough to check on me at all."

Brooke's ever-lively influence kept me from breaking on the car ride into the city. I tried to push all of the anxiety about the future behind my excitement, at least until I was able to see Lysander. He'd make everything all better, and I couldn't face what happened, or what was to happen, without him by my side first.

By the time we arrived at the venue everything was cast in the cool half-light of pre-dusk. Despite Chaos wasn't on for another two hours, and I wondered if Lysander would be surprised to see me so early. Brooke called Castiel as soon as we got past the ticket line, and he walked us through the winding labyrinth of hallways to a bright corridor of murmuring voices. She quickly pointed out a specific door, mouthing Lysander's name before disappearing into to a room that I assumed led her to Castiel.

I was physically unable to hold back another second, and lunged towards the door that separated me from Lysander. Rapping a shaky fist on the wood, I listened carefully for his thoughts.

"Just a minute!" He called courteously, obviously unaware of my presence.

Intense feelings, complex emotions that laid dormant at the pit of my stomach rose to the occasion when I heard his voice. _Can my emotional breakdown wait just a minute? I sure hope so._

My heart was racing when I saw the door handle turn, and in slow motion, Lysander appeared bit by bit, peeping through the cracked door suspiciously before his eyes illuminated in glorious high-definition.

"Lunabelle!"

He was anxious to usher me in immediately, my strength deteriorating with every step. As soon as the rest of the world was shut out behind us_...I broke_.

"Lysander..." Clinging to him for dear life I choked his name, grabbing fistfuls of his white linen shirt as tears as sprang without warning from my eyes, soaking his chest. All at once, I was a sputtering, dribbling mess.

His breathing hitched, every hair on his body standing to my attention. "Luna! Wh-what's the matter?!"

I quivered up at him, gasping and desperate for composure. My mind was overcast in gray and Lysander thumbed my tears away, his eyes searching mine for clarity. "What happened, Luna? Talk to me..."

"My father...knows...everything. _He knows everything..._" I panted raggedly.

His gaze withered, narrowing as my words rocked his mind like a bullet between the eyes. He drew his hand to his chin. "He..._everything?_ He finally got suspicious...made you unblock?"

I swatted at my tears with the back of my hand, nodding my head in sniffling testimony.

"You're not supposed to be here tonight…are you?" He droned, setting his mouth in a grim line.

"I had to get out. I had to see you." My voice wouldn't stop trembling.

His panic swallowed him whole, and his eyelids flickered with the words. "But…wh-what if he notices that you're missing? What if he finds out you're here?"

"I don't think he will...he didn't even want to look at me. I just had to get away before he started drinking..." The right words were stuck to the roof of my mouth, but my thoughts played the images of fear clearly over again.

"Luna..." He started, clearing his throat before speaking again, "maybe it wasn't wise of you to come..."

The impact of his words struck me down and I just blinked, unable to move. His eyes were grave, shining down on me with disapproval. Although I understood why, it became clear that he wasn't listening to my thoughts at all.

"I...I was scared..." Pushing through bated breath was difficult. I didn't have words to explain it, but I could show him with my mind..._if only he'd read it._

"If he finds out that you're here it's only going to make things worse. We should've seen this coming..." He ran a trembling hand through his feathery hair while I rubbed tears with my knuckles, silently begging for his support.

"I needed to be with you...you don't understand..."

For the first time ever, he just _wasn't listening _to me. I couldn't believe my eyes as I watched him crumble, touching his hair, moving his hands all over the place, reaching for anything to quell his anxiety. Where was my sunny optimist when I needed him most? Seeing what I'd reduced him to made me want to hide away and die.

"He's going to make things hard for us, Luna. And if he catches you tonight...God, _what were you thinking_?"

I raked my palms with shaky fingernails, biting my tongue hard to keep from screaming right then and there.

_Lysander wants to know what I was thinking? He's seriously asking me what I was thinking? If he wants to know so badly, all he has to do is listen!_

He had the key to my soul, and yet he stood there in front of me, staring at me like just another person. He couldn't hear me crying for him over his own anxiety. He _wasn't listening_. He was letting his fear overcome him. He was _blaming_ me.

"I didn't feel safe." I finally blurted softly, focusing my eyes on a small, pearly button sewn carefully onto his collar, "He...he threatened me. I was scared."

Reluctantly blinking to look up at him, I watched the color melt off his face, leaving nothing but a sickly pale green. His pupils dilated, his lips twitching as he leaned in. "Wh-what?"

_Now he listens..._

"He raised a fist to me; threw a chair at me. He was a different person, and it was terrifying. I panicked and called Brooke."

"Did he hurt you?" Lysander's demand cut through the air like a knife. Even though he already knew the answer, he had to verify it in words.

"No, he didn't. I'm fine. He wanted to...and that was enough for me. He's bigger than me, and I wasn't sure I would've been able to defend myself if things got any worse." I could hardly see through the pooling tears in my eyes, but felt Lysander's fingers brush against mine and immediately snapped them back as if he was too hot to touch.

"Luna..." He breathed, his hand lingering.

_How could I have been so stupid?_ My eyes itched, my mouth was dry, and I cleared my sore throat before speaking up in a chapped pitter, "But...you're right. I shouldn't be here. It was irresponsible of me to leave, and foolish to think I could get away with it. He'll only be angrier if he catches me; I need to be brave and find a way back home before I make things even worse."

Lysander grabbed my arm again and I gaped at his gesture, watching his fingers tighten protectively around my wrist. "You're not going back there..."

"Would you make up your mind!? First you scold me for being here and now I'm not allowed to go back? What do you want me to do?" I tore my arm back angrily, unable to control the hurricane of unfurling emotions in my chest. _Oh dear, I've never raised my voice like that before…_

"I- I overreacted; I just completely panicked thinking about what your father might do to keep us apart. I won't let you go back there, though. For him to so much as _think_ about hurting you…" He was absolutely relentless, attempting to reach out to hold me again. I stomped backwards, waving my arms because I didn't know what else to do.

_'Luna, I'm so sorry. I didn't know...'_

_'I tried to tell you. You weren't listening.'_

Lysander's face dropped into a look of complete disgrace, his eyes filling with remorse that tore my heart out and slashed it into a thousand pieces. I was so upset about everything, but was I really angry at him? I didn't know, and just kept talking.

"I wanted to leave because I was scared, but I also wanted to talk to you about this...about how we're going to get through this...I needed you." I was just spewing everything all over the place, crying, breathless, and lost in petty emotions.

"You're right, sweet girl...you're absolutely right, we need to talk, and we're going to get through this. I'm so sorry for not listening to you. I'm listening now." He took another step towards me, this time trying to gather my hands in his, but I ripped them away.

"I felt like a ghost, speaking a language that you suddenly couldn't hear or understand. In the whole world, you're the only one who isn't supposed to make me feel that way. I thought you'd always listen, even when I didn't have words."

"_Luna_…I'm sorry. Please..._please_ forgive me." His eyes were gasping for breath, his chest rising, and as if a hug could fix everything, he was trying to hold me _yet again._

"Lysander, _stop!_" This time I leapt backwards, flapping my arms in protest. I knew if he so much as_ tapped_ my skin I'd be done for. "Don't."

He stood still, just blinking, holding his breath and about to fall to pieces. I didn't want to see the damage I'd done by snapping at him and buried my face in my hands, all at once falling to my knees, sobbing into my palms. The world fell away, leaving nothing but a wide abyss for me to drown in.

_I should've never come here...I'm so selfish! I wasn't thinking about anyone but myself, and now I've made everything worse. _

_Lysander didn't deserve that... I've done nothing but cause him more grief. I'd understand if he walked out and left me right here, right now. I'm just taking out all of my emotions on him! _

_We would've been okay if I'd been a big girl and stayed home like I was supposed to. Oh, what am I doing?_

My aching body longed for him, despite my efforts to push him away. I wanted so badly for him to hold me. I wanted him to make me feel safe, like everything was going to be okay, but...was I supposed to be mad at him? Or maybe I wanted him to be mad at me for ruining everything. Maybe I was trying to punish myself by resisting the only thing I wanted in this world.

_I'm so confused. I have no idea what I'm doing anymore..._

Why was I surprised that in my moment of utter weakness, curled up on the ground, his arms soon found their way around me? Once I felt his warmth, I was done. I silently welcomed him by submitting to his every desire.

He pulled me onto his lap and in no time I was nuzzling him and pouring tears into his shoulder as he rubbed my back, his steady heartbeat like a lullaby that never failed to hush tears. _'Please forgive me, Luna...please don't leave me. I can't lose you.'_

Of course I wasn't _really_ mad at him; I could _never_ be mad at Lysander Larkin. Who could?

I wrapped my arms around his neck, lifting my head to breathe him in. The moment my eyes met his I expected to see that same disappointment outlining his irises, but he wasn't looking at me like he was angry or upset; he was looking at me like he loved me. When his mouth came crashing down on mine I didn't fight it; my inhibitions ceased to exist whenever our lips met. Kissing him hard was so liberating, and he weaved his fingers through my hair, tightening them as he parted my lips with his to keep me from ever pulling away.

_'I love you, Lysander...and that's all I know right now.'_

_'That's all I'll ever really know, my beautiful girl. I love you, and I promise, no matter what happens, we'll be okay.'_

We were reduced to a mess on the floor, forgetting everything else. Our minds drifted off, running away together as I rested my head on his shoulder. Our breath synced, and each one we drew sent us further into total reverie. The world around us vanished, every little sound silenced as I melted into him. All that was left was warmth, and a strong pair of arms, a shoulder to wipe my tears, and a soft pair of lips on my forehead.

Everything else just didn't exist for a moment, and my eyes were itchy with the linger of dried-up tears. Everything was right in the world again. Just as long as everything was right in our world, it would always be.

We weren't aware of anything else going on around us. If we had been, we would've heard the sneaky thoughts, and we would've been able to anticipate the attack. If we had been, we would've noticed Castiel approaching before we were sprayed mercilessly with silly string.

_Oh, hi half-naked Castiel...and red, sticky, slimy substance! _

"Dammit Cas! They were having a moment!" Brooke appeared in the door way, red in the face and elbowing him in the ribs as he chuckled through a toothy smile. He patted the short brunette on the top of her head before starting towards us impishly.

Lysander tisked, his lips crooked as he pulled a long strand of silly string from my hair. "Hmm, it appears we've been assaulted, my love. How are we going to retaliate?"

I shook my head, giggling with surprise and fluster. We were lucky that Lysander an expert on handling his best friend's hijinks; it didn't take him long to figure something out. He glanced down at his used-to-be-white shirt that was covered in tears, drool, and red silly string with thoughtful consideration. All at once he was pulling it over his head, rolling it into a makeshift whip and snapping it against Castiel's bare chest.

"Fuck!" Castiel cried, dropping the canister of silly string all together. Brooke grabbed my hand, pulling me out of the line of fire and my eyes widened as Castiel jumped on Lysander's back, wrapping him in a choke-hold from behind.

Brooke giggled at my apprehension, reassuring me with an eye roll, "They do this all the time. Castiel will learn his lesson...some day."

Meanwhile, Lysander was quick to push Castiel from his back and onto the ground with a thud. Castiel wasn't ready to back down though, and came up swinging his fists with devious laughter while Lysander effortlessly dodged every single punch. He grabbed his best friend, lifting him into the air and spinning in dizzy circles.

Brooke and I couldn't breathe or blink through all-consuming giggles, pointing and gasping as Lysander threw Castiel down on the beat-up couch in the corner, falling on top of him to restrain him by his wrists. "Tickle him, now!"

"Don't you dare!" Castiel growled, his twisted face only enticing us more.

Seeing my shirtless boyfriend straddling his equally-shirtless best friend was an odd sight, to say the least, and I stood, sort of paralyzed while Brooke sprinted to Castiel, pinching his thighs and causing him to cry and writhe with agonizing laughter. "TRATIOR!"

_'Get his underarms!'_ Lysander winked at me while the poor guitarist shook his head, wordlessly begging for mercy before I lunged in to tickle him to tears.

We conjured dozens of malicious ways to torture Castiel, letting him crawl away with his dignity only when Lysander was quite sure he'd learned that spraying silly string all over sentimental moments was impolite…even though we secretly didn't mind the mood-lifting distraction one bit.

Once Castiel regained semi-composure, the four of us sat cross-legged on the carpet, recalling details from only minutes earlier and laughing hysterically. Castiel scratched at his scalp, stretching his arms over his head before throwing them around Brooke and pulling her into his chest.

"I was going to ask if you wanted to run through the set one more time...but now I'm not so sure I'm even comfortable being in the same band as you. You're like, an evil wizard or something." Castiel hissed, simpering mischievously at his best friend underneath choppy black bangs.

Lysander combed unaware fingers through my hair in a daze, humming to himself. "Oh, that hardly seems fair, Castiel. Would an evil wizard play hopeless matchmaker for almost a year between the two most clueless people on the face of the earth?"

"Hey!" Castiel's eyebrows arched as he teasingly tightened his hold on Brooke, "my little girl isn't clueless! She just doesn't waste her time with supporting details!"

Lysander and I rested our temples together, listening fondly as Brooke and Castiel bantered back and forth. Unlike us, they'd never truly know how much they loved each other. They naturally trusted their feelings, and that was a beautiful thing to witness.

A denim-clad Nathaniel soon stumbled upon our pow-wow, shaking his head and choosing not to question the shirtless, sweaty dishevelment of his fellow bandmates. The idea of practicing one more time was revisited, and when I kissed Lysander farewell I left extra sparks on his lips for good luck.

I followed Brooke through crowds of faces and voices that all blurred together, straight up five carpeted steps and right to the perfect spot where Leigh, Rosalya and Melody kept two seats warm. They greeted us like celebrities, or war heroes, waving and smiling frantically when they saw us.

An accomplished smile danced on my cheeks as I sat and caught up with my friends, half of me observing the other band on the stage, the other half eager to watch Lysander blow them completely out of the water. My night on the town as a full-fledged fugitive was moving right along without a hitch, and I was relishing in it, my skin fitly aglow under overhead black lights.

As we sat and talked, Brooke suddenly seemed restless in her seat, drawing harsh inhales as if something was bothering her. I quickly dipped into her mind to make sure she was alright and learned that her chronic back pain was flaring up at the worst possible time, and she was in quite a bit of pain. I listened as the reminder of something else popped into the frontal lobe and her eyes widened as she sprung up.

"_Shit!"_

"What is it?" I asked immediately, tucking fly-away strands of hair behind my ear.

"I forgot my stupid camera in the car! Castiel made me promise that we'd get good pictures for the band's Facebook page tonight, and Rosa's camera is broken..." She groaned wistfully, pain laced in her inner-voice.

"I'll go get it for you!" I blurted, waving my hand to volunteer instantly.

Brooke arched a tidy eyebrow, swatting at my benevolence sheepishly. "Nah, don't worry about it! I'll go in just a minute..."

"Please," I insisted, "it's the least I can do after all you've done for me tonight. I need to stretch my legs anyway; I'm getting restless!"

Her lips scribbled a conflicted side-skew, and she shifted uncomfortably again in her spot. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely, I'll be right back!"

I placed my knapsack down on the empty seat, more than happy to do a favor for Brooke. Killing time with a brisk walk and some fresh air certainly couldn't hurt, either.

"Oh, are you going out to the parking lot?" Rosalya leaned in with wonder.

I nodded, regarding the rest of the group, "Need anything while I'm there?"

"I was just going to suggest you use that back door over there. Melody and I came in that way; it's a straight shot that'll spit you right out next to the parking lot, instead of walking all the way around the building." The silver-haired bombshell explained colorfully with her hands.

I looked behind her to where she pointed, and Leigh listened on with an eyebrow raised. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"What do you mean?"

He scratched his chin, his mouth hanging open in thought. "This is a lousy part of town; I don't know if I'm comfortable with you going out there all alone, and I'm positive Lys wouldn't be, either. Let me go get my coat from backstage and I'll come with you!" He offered, starting to raise himself from the chair.

"No, no, stay! I'll be fine! I'll be back in the time that it took you to get your coat!"

Leigh studied my face for a moment, trying to determine whether he trusted my confidence. "Alright. You're a smart girl, just _please_ be careful...and don't talk to strangers, okay?"

I looped my pinky through Leigh's and nodded with a giggle. "I'll be right back!"

* * *

Stretching the sleeves of my cardigan over my palms, a gasp slipped through chattering teeth as soon as I felt the night chill nip my skin. The world seemed ten shades darker from the murky alleyway, and if it weren't for the lackluster lights that lined the enclosing brick walls I would have been too scared to take another step.

I kept my eyes fixed full speed ahead with my stride, pushing on as quickly as possible. The lights illuminated the sidewalk at the end of the avenue and I watched cars pass by on the street ahead. My steadfast gait came to an abrupt halt though, when three large silhouettes staggered into the light.

Watching them cautiously from the shadows, my stomach churned as one by one they turned their attention to where I stood paralyzed. _…Can they see me?_ They elbowed one another, pointing and coming to some kind of mutual decision before stumbling collectively onward, their brutish laughter echoing off the closed-walled street as they started towards me.

_Stranger danger! No one has to tell me twice! _

I spun a perfect pirouette, turning to straight myself in the opposite direction while the sky appeared to darken all around me. My eyes stayed centered on my new destination, and I tried to act casual. They weren't actually following me, right?

With each step I took the door to safety seemed to only shrink further away from me, and the footsteps behind me grew louder, closer; their laughter sounding only more manic and despicable. Terrifying awareness started coursing through me, burning like acid in my veins.

A part of me wanted to run, _especially_ when their vile thoughts and intentions trickled into my mind, but I knew now that if I did that, they'd run right after me. Their raucous voices made my stomach churn, and my skin itched with sweat as I trembled.

I didn't want to admit that their voices and footsteps were only growing louder. I didn't want to admit they were following me, herding me…

_They're closing in on me…_

With a good six feet between I lunged for the stairs, grabbing on to the cold, rusty railing desperately. Just before I could hurl myself up and through the three men ran to catch up, towering, encircling me; the stockiest one outstretching an arm to block the door completely.

_Oh my God...no._

"Hey sugar, what's the rush?" He slurred, shattering the intense silence. The whiskey on his breath was nauseatingly obvious.

I gaped up at them, standing paralyzed as I tried to remember if I'd ever learned anything about self-defense.

"S-stay away from me!" I warned in a voice that was meant to sound daunting, but instead cracked half-way through into a pitchy display of total weakness. They found it amusing and boxed me in closer while I balled my fists; ready to do whatever necessary to defend myself.

"Aw, c'mon sweet thing, don't be like that!" One of them booed, and as he reached to grab me I quickly ducked under the arm that blocked my way, tripping up the steps and crawling for the backdoor.

I had a sinking feeling that it was a wasted attempt but reached out anyway, feeling the metal door handle slip through my fingers as they pulled me from the stairs by my waist. I screeched out and was thrown down onto the hard pavement, catching myself on my hands and knees with a _smack_. My soft skin ripped against the jagged asphalt, the smell of blood gushing from the fresh scrapes. I thought maybe I could crawl away, but was hoisted into the air by my underarms and pinned up against the brick wall. _I never stood a chance..._

Hot, delirious tears blurred my vision and I writhed and shook from under their grasp the second my back hit the wall. I could feel a loud scream boiling at the back of my throat and tried to suck in air to let it out, but my mouth was so dry I could barely even muster soft, breathless pleas.

"P-please...I-I don't have any...thing..." I sobbed, even though I knew very well that what they wanted from me wasn't tangible. _If they think I'm just going to lie down and take it they've got another thing coming..._

"She's a little pistol, ay?" One of them laughed as I thrashed hysterically, trying to loosen his hold on me to no avail.

"Yeah, a real firecracker!" Their features were distorted, their voices weren't distinctive, but the fusty, sickening smell of cigarette smoke and stale alcohol singed the tip of my nostrils lastingly.

"LET GO!" My voice echoed through the alleyway, finally managing to project itself at full volume. I swung my legs and mule-kicked forward, striking the man in front of me right in the stomach. He dropped me to the ground, doubling over and gasping in pain.

In a blink, the other two were tackling me, pulling me back to my feet by my hair. One of them held me still against his body, both watching on in fascination as my 'victim' finally regained stability, his nose twitching with anger.

My protest didn't go unpunished, and I was _backhanded so hard_ that blackness curled in from the outside of my vision; for a millisecond I was completely blind. When the darkness receded, I saw stars. My face seethed in pain, but as soon as I could open my mouth I was attempting to scream again. My stomach rolled with nausea when a dirty hand slapped over my mouth, another firmly on my throat to quiet me for good.

In a truly unfair amount of time, my breaths were fleeting; numbered, and my attackers seemed to become fascinated by the way I jerked and hacked while they choked me. Their voices grew dimmer, and stealing a breath or two beneath the firm claw on my neck was a treat.

It wasn't long before I began to accept my fate for what it was.

_I can feel myself dying…_

_I'm going to die here. On this night I'll disappear and no one will ever know what happened to me; they'll never know the truth. No one will know how hard I fought to stay alive. They'll search for me...Lysander will lead them! And he won't stop. He won't give up until my cold, dead body turns up, discovered by some horrified jogger deep in the woods..._

In that moment I was sad _not _for me and the unspeakable horrors in my future, but for Lysander, and for my father, as certainly the rest of their lives would be misshapen by my untimely murder.

Soft, quiet tears rolled down my cold cheeks as I gasped for breath. One of the men slapped me across the face again, but I was numb now. They started lifting up my dress, exposing my bare skin to the bitter cold, and even half-conscious I still managed to feel ashamed when I felt their hands on me.

As the strong fingers tightened around my airway, my breathing slowed and my kicks did too. Darkness crept through to my vision again, and I began to drift away. Giving in truly seemed like my only option...

A booming, deafening** clap **…_a gun shot? Thunder? …_reverberated sharply off the bricks and I was dropped to the ground in a pile of breathless disorientation suddenly. Breathing in the sweet air around me I tried to lift my eyelids, catching a glimpse of the metal door as it hit the wall. It'd been kicked open by a beautifully unmistakable pair of black boots...

I raised my aching head from the pavement and watched as Lysander came barreling out, jumping clean over the railing and landing on his feet in front of the three men. His eyes darted to mine first before he lifted his head to glare at my assailants.

He was speaking...screaming at them, but the ringing in my ears distorted his words and I couldn't hear anything. My heart dropped when the men encircled him; I knew he didn't stand a chance three on one, but I was much too weary to get up and help him fight. They laughed and banded around him, kneading their fists in their hands.

My head fell back down onto the hard ground, my eyes floor-level and only able to make out boots. Three pairs of equally dirty, unkempt, steel-toed workboots against one pair of tall, spotless rider boots, the teal straps at the base so familiar and dear to my heart. I couldn't just lie there and watch those boots be beaten. I had to do something.

"D -don't hurt him..." I whimpered, holding my hand out to plead with my attackers. No one heard me, and I took in one last heaving breath of air, letting out a miraculous scream at the top of my lungs, my eyes pressed shut.

Lysander yelled something, _"Don't take another step!"_ ...it sounded like, and I heard stomping, felt vibrations on the ground, closer and closer...

Without warning, an _excruciating_ blow to my ribcage rocked my entire body, stealing the beat of my heart and breath from my lungs. I doubled over, retching, hacking up blood and bile, convulsing, tossing and turning in more pain than I'd ever felt in my life. An earsplitting **snap**, like the crack from a whip sounded when the steel-toed boot struck my ribs, and just the thought of it had me vomiting again. In that moment I was blind, deaf, and brain dead; the only thing left was pain.

I flickered in and out of consciousness after that, but upon realizing that the chaos around me had eerily disappeared, I forced myself to muster the last twinge of strength I had to make sure that Lysander was okay.

What I saw had me questioning my sanity, my vision, my senses, _everything_. Adrenaline enabled me to lift my head somewhat-attentively. I wanted so badly to believe that it was just a hallucination, but I knew as I stared on that I was witnessing everything in blinding actuality.

_Lysander's eyes_...they were like something from a nightmare as they glowed in malice on the three men _at his feet_. They writhed and seized across the pavement, groaning in agony, contorting their bodies unnaturally.

No matter_ what_ they did and almost-did to me, I was sick to my stomach watching them squirm in pain.

Lysander however_, was not_. He seemed to be in a trance as he observed their suffering carefully, his own body trembling and his mind just as quiet as the first time I'd ever met him.

When the men stopped their thrashing all together, collapsing motionlessly on the pavement, Lysander suddenly drew a gasping breath, dry-heaving, and seeming to snap back into reality from a dark, far-off place.

He regained control and awareness, and was at my side in a flash, scooping me carefully onto his lap as I coughed and gagged with the movement of my abdomen.

"Luna! Luna, look at me, breathe, baby…I've got you..."

I glanced up at him through narrowed eyes, chomping down on my lip to keep myself from howling out in pain.

"Oh Luna..." He gasped, tears streaming from his eyes as he cradled me close to him. He'd sweat through his shirt completely, his hair clinging to his neck and cheeks in soaking tendrils. "I'm here, I've got you. You're safe now."

I'd never heard such panic in his stoic voice and it broke my heart...but he acted as though what just happened was second in comparison to my injuries, _when it certainly wasn't_. I tried to sit up, my ribs seething as I gritted my teeth.

"No no, stay still...shh, don't move." Lysander cooed softly, his hold on me growing tighter.

I reached out to touch his face, looking him deep in the eyes. "W-what did you...do?"

His teeth chattered from behind his lips as he looked around at the three men lying motionless on the ground around us. I sat up slowly now, holding onto Lysander's neck, my body throbbing but my mind even more painful.

"I had to protect you...I wanted them to suffer...I lost control..."

I was sick again, and tossed my head to the side to drive out more bile and blood. Lysander rubbed my back as my stomach churned and flipped, hushing me softly while I gagged. Spitting out the last of my stomach contents, I let my mind speak before I expected myself to pass out cold. _'Are they dead?'_

My heart was pounding in my head, every nerve ending in my body a live wire as I waited for an answer. Lysander was reluctant to check, but carefully set me down on the asphalt, walking over to them to assess their vitals as best as he could. The minutes of silence that passed by were agonizing.

_'They're alive...but they don't deserve to be.'_

I was slowly slipping out of consciousness, breathing just enough to stay alive. Counting each inhale, my eyelids flickered and I could feel reality receding with each blink. When I detected Lysander gathering my wilted body in his arms I wanted to help him by inching onto his lap, but I was paralyzed, and just laid there motionless, unable to do anything but stare up at him. _'You...you saved my life, Lysander.'_

Needless guilt trickled from the corners of his glossy eyes; the devotion ablaze in his stare warmed my shivering bones. _'I'm so sorry I didn't come sooner. I heard you calling for me in my head, Luna…'_

I shook my head in disbelief. I was amazed, but so delirious and disoriented that I didn't question anything, cupping his face with my trembling fingers and attempting to wipe his tears. He pressed his hands to mine for a moment and then reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone and tapping the touchscreen slowly. _'Wh-what're you doing?' _

With one more blink my worn eyes refused to open again, but I could hear the phone's buttons in his hand. _'I've got to call an ambulance; you need to go to the hospital.'_

"No..." I whimpered, mustering every last ounce of strength that I had left to refuse.

The hospital would notify my father of my predicament...of everything I'd done tonight. I was sick with the thought of it.

_'I know, sweet girl. You won't get in trouble…because I'm going to explain everything to him myself.'_


	27. Chapter Twenty Six

**Chapter Twenty Six: Don't Blink**

I'd always been under the impression that blacking out was a lot like sleeping, but it wasn't. It was more like blinking.

I guess I was batting in and out of consciousness for a while. The world was like a broken record, and every time I blinked I'd see a different fast-forward moment: Lysander frantically speaking into the phone, Lysander trying to coax me awake, faces that I recognized gaping down at me, loud voices, flashing lights, a stretcher, and a neck brace, maybe.

Nothing is clear, but I do know that Lysander never left me; every time I opened my eyes he was there. He seemed to glow blindingly above me like an angel, and at one point I recall thinking that's what he actually was.

The last thing I remember was a brief outburst of panic in back of the ambulance. I was scared, but Lysander's calm words over the chaos acted as a natural sedative and I closed my eyes to the sound of his singing.

One more big blink and I was in a blurry white room. The world felt unbalanced and irrational, as if I'd inhaled too much paint, and I shut my eyes quickly when everything started to spin. The confusion was painful at first, but it didn't take long for all of my memories to suddenly reappear in my train of thought. Even then, I was still disoriented.

_Where am I? Where is Lysander?_

_Why do I feel like this? Why does my arm sting? _

_My ribs feel funny…my head is reeling! I'm going to be sick…_

_Does my father know?_

The first thing I wanted to do was talk, ask whoever could hear me all my questions, or even just let someone know that I existed. I opened my mouth to speak, breathing the sharp scent of disinfectant and fresh laundered linen while a random string of words fell off my tongue to the floor. "My…my arm…hurts."

Prying my eyes open, I glanced to the side and immediately shrank back into my pillow when father came into focus, every crease in his ragged face tightening at me. I had nothing to say to him; I just wasn't in the state of mind to explain myself. I was however, in desperate need of a Lysander hug. The fact that it wasn't instant bothered me.

"Lulu! Oh, sweetheart…" Father muttered, extending his arms to cautiously embrace me. He kissed my forehead and it prickled my skin, shocking me into suspicion.

_Why isn't he screaming at me right now? There are three competent chairs in this room and none of them are flying towards my head. What's going on_?

"Ly…sander." I slurred, pointing a weary finger around the hospital room we were in. My speech was incoherent, but father knew what I was saying, even if he acted like he didn't. His selective hearing never failed to drive me insane.

"Are you in pain?" He asked, tilting his head with concern "Is your I.V bothering you?"

My eyes fell, my lips curling into a scowl at the unsightly blood-splotched adhesive tape that tethered me to a bag of clear liquid dripping through a line into my vein.

"I don't want this…" I declared, reaching to eliminate the entire apparatus. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but father gently took my hands in his and squeezed them lovingly before I could pull the line.

"No, no, sweetheart." He cooed softly. I tugged deliriously to free my hands once again.

"You were in shock. You need fluid treatment, and we'll have to stay here until you've received the proper amount. You broke two ribs, and there isn't anything they can do for that. You're on a high dosage of morphine to manage the pain so you might feel a little dizzy. Are you hurting at all?"

Yes, I was certainly hurting, but more medicine would only take care of the physical pain. I sat up, clenching my teeth as I stretched my neck to look behind my father for Lysander.

"He's not here, Luna."

His words sounded just as foreign to me as if he was speaking in his angry-tongues; it didn't compute or make sense. _Of course he's here. I know him; he wouldn't leave me like this. _

I shook my head in denial and called out for him, "Lysander!"

"Luna, hush." Father rubbed my shoulder supportively, obviously trying to get my mind off things.

I ignored him completely. "Lysander?"

"He's not here, Lulu. Now please…"

"Lysander! Lysander?"

"Luna, listen to me. He's. Not. Here."

All I could do was continue to search the room, turning my head helplessly and whining like a lost puppy. _'Where is he?'_

Father sighed to himself, his posture faltering as he glanced to my wondering eyes. "Lysander was honest with me. He came to me as a man and told me _everything_, and I do appreciate that, I really do…but _he's dangerous_. We're lucky no one was killed tonight! I let him stay until they stabilized you, and then sent him away. You're not to see him anymore…"

My eyes narrowed on him, clouding my vision while the rest of me seemed to be melting to the floor, my bottom lip a quivering mess.

"Wh-what?" I snapped, my brows spiking with newfound rage. _How dare he suggest such a thing!?_

"I said you won't be seeing him anymore. As in, I'm putting an end to your involvement with Lysander."

"Nu-n-no! …No! H-he's not dangerous…he _saved my life_! He had nothing to do with this mess…it's all my fault! He'd never hurt me! Blame me, not him."

"Oh, I'm well aware that you're the one to blame, Luna. You're clearly not mature or responsible enough for a relationship."

I shook my head over and over again, "You can't keep me from him."

Father crossed his arms, his forehead sagging with impatience. "I know that. I can't even trust you to live or be around him, which is why I'm using the money I've saved to buy you a car for your tuition at St. Catherine's Academy, an all-girl's boarding school two hours from here."

_Wait…_

_What did he just say? _

I just stared at him, blinking and replaying the words to make sure I had heard him correctly.

_Boarding school? _

_Two hours away? _

_From Lysander…?_

"No, no, no…absolutely not." My head tossed from side to side. All I could say to him was no. There was just _no_ way.

Father pursed his lips into a shameless sneer and nodded his head in time with my shaking. "Yes, yes, yes. You think _you_ have a say in the matter? Absolutely not." _Is he…mocking me?_

"Father…" I choked, my voice cracking.

"We'll pack this weekend and leave on Sunday. You'll graduate; turn eighteen in June, and if you haven't learned that Lysander is no good for you by then I suppose there won't be anything more I can do to protect you."

His thoughts, his tone of voice…_he was serious._ This wasn't an empty threat. He wasn't bluffing, or kidding around. This was real, and I couldn't breathe.

I felt just as helpless as I had with my back against the wall in the alleyway. My lungs closed up, and adrenaline chewed through to my bloodstream, coursing through my soul, filling me with the urge to fight back.

In a split second I was huffing air, my ribs seething with pressure as I let out a piercing screech that caught father off guard. Thrashing and trying to spring up from the bed to run away, the last straw was being tugged back by a dull sting in my arm.

"Luna, calm down! You're going to pull the-"

He was late to react, and before he could think to stop me I reached down and grabbed the restricting line. Survival mode masked logic; without a second thought my fingers clasped around the I.V, tearing the catheter straight from my arm in one quick motion. The flimsy hose tore through my thin skin like paper, the sticky adhesive tape pulling the cut wide open. The blood rush was sickening, and I instantly felt it dripping down my forearm but I didn't care. I was too busy screaming and trying to push myself from the bed to escape. The pain was second priority; getting away was first.

"Luna, stop! You're bleeding everywhere!"

"Let me go!" I yelped, kicking out at my father as he tried to block me, hold me down, and grab my bleeding arm all at the same time. There was blood in the air from my thrashing and it rained down to cover the white sheets, father, and myself.

"God dammit, Luna! You're going to bleed out!" He was frantically trying to grab my arm but I just kept dodging, swatting him away.

"You can't do this! No!"

I pressed my eyes closed and tossed my head straight into a soft pair of hands that suddenly cupped my face_. 'Lunabelle! Calm down! Shh, I'm here…it's me…'_

_Lysander?_

My eyes shot open, blinking repeatedly in disbelief when I was met with the porcelain face and glowing eyes of the only person in the whole world who could've stopped me in that moment.

"Don't leave me, Lysander! Don't let him take me!" I sobbed in panic, tears pouring from my eyes at the sight of him as I grabbed his hand with my good one. _My Lysander! He'll save me! _

Lysander leaned in to gently kiss my forehead. His hands on my cheeks were trembling, but he kept his thoughts calm and collected, distracting me for long enough to allow father to gather bandages from around the room for my gushing wound. Lysander watched him closely from the corner of his eyes_. 'I'm here, my love…I'm here.'_

Once my father caught his breath and wrapped the gash he wasted no time shooting daggers at my hero, who stepped back to acknowledge his confrontation.

"_Lysander…_" He hissed through his teeth, trying his very best not to blow up, "I thought I told you to go home over an hour ago. What are you doing here?"

Lysander straightened his posture, glancing down to me before respiring and running a hand through his sticky, messy hair. "Forgive me for my continuous honesty, Mr. Broderick, but I simply cannot leave her. I can't be expected to stay away knowing that she's hurt; I couldn't even make it more than a few steps down the hallway. Please sir, _please _let me stay with her. If only for a moment…"

"Absolutely not. A line has been crossed...and not just tonight. The line was crossed the moment you decided to manipulate her innocent mind for your own sick pleasure…" Father spat at Lysander, who was taken aback, his eyes widening.

"Sir, I don't know what you think I did to Luna, but I swear to you that I'd never manipulate her. I'd never do anything to hurt her…everything I've ever done has been out of love." He put his hand on his heart, his face solemn and sweating.

Father was steaming with rage as he shook his head. "I was willing to put my anger behind me earlier but you've disobeyed me yet again. I have half a mind to have you arrested for the statutory rape of a minor! You defiled her purity and corrupted her into someone I don't even know! She was a good, innocent child before she met you. You're toxic, Lysander. I'll allow you to see her off before we move her into the Academy on Sunday morning, so Luna can have some closure but after that all contact will cease until she is of age...hopefully by then she'll realize that this romance you two have invented is nothing more than a facade."

I was hyperventilating and between bated breaths couldn't utter a word. My thoughts just kept churning, glued to the two telepaths that burned each other with their glares.

My world stopped turning all together when I watched Lysander's eyes varnish and fill with unbidden tears. "Please don't send her away. I'll change. I'll stay away from her. Put a restraining order on me if you have to, just don't turn her whole world upside down because of me. She has friends here, and I can protect her from afar. Don't make her uproot her entire life again. This mixed with the injuries she sustained tonight won't be good for her…don't you see that? You're going to hurt her even more!"

"I won't go. I won't." I managed to choke, reaching for Lysander with my good arm.

Father clenched his teeth and balled his hands into sweating fists, glaring at Lysander with a snarl that made me want to hide under the blankets. "It's not up for discussion. You don't know what's best for her. You're not her father. I am."

Lysander shook his head, unable to hold back the words on his tongue. "What kind of father threatens to harm their daughter out of anger? What kind of a father would send their child away without giving them a chance to heal from a traumatic injury? Maybe I do know what's best for her…maybe you should reconsider Luna's situation. Maybe she'd be better off with me."

Father pressed his fists harder, his entire face turning red as he glared at Lysander. "You're funny, Lysander. You really think I'd agree to that? What are you going to do, gadje? Kill me? Project me into thinking otherwise? You wouldn't get away with it, you know."

Lysander just stared at him, conflicted and confused. He didn't know what to do. I was hoping he'd convince my father to let me go with him, but we didn't know what kind of trouble Lysander could cause if he used his abilities on another telepath; father made it seem as though A.I.M would somehow be informed and involved. Either way, we were reassured that we had no idea what we were up against in his burning gaze and manic smirk.

"I don't know what kind of monster you think I am. My sole purpose is to protect Luna. I do not wish to hurt anyone at all." Lysander's eyes fell to the ground as he mumbled.

"Well then, what do you know? Something we have in common! We both want what is best for Luna; we both want to protect her. I suggest you stand back and let me do my job as her guardian. I can't say anything more about it, but I can assure you that interfering with my decisions will only cause more harm. None of us want that, do we?"

Lysander shook his head, glancing up to me from behind the mess of hair in his face.

"Say your goodbyes and leave now, Lysander; before I change my mind about Sunday morning."

He acknowledged father's words with another formal nod and turned to me, his face flushed and soaking with sweat and tears as he fished through his pocket and held up my promise ring. I was paralyzed, shaking my head and sobbing, but he disregarded it and reached for my hand, leaning down and slipping the ring on my finger with a stoic, loving expression.

'_I love you, Luna Broderick. Remember my promise. Come what may, I'll always love you. We'll get through this. We'll be okay.'_

'_Lysander…'_ I was about to break. Father had about two seconds left to change his mind.

'_I love you, don't you ever forget that.' _Lysander slowly backed away towards the door, pressing his trembling fingers to his lips and then holding them out in my direction.

"No! Don't leave me!" I cried, reaching my arms out for him. He didn't run back to me, he just kept receding.

'_I never will. I love you…'_ He gave me one last longing gaze before stepping out into the hallway.

'_I love you too! _"Take me with you!"

Father stood over me, opening his mouth to speak. I didn't give him the chance though, and kicked my legs at him in fury. Now that I didn't have the I.V to worry about I'd do everything in my power to escape and follow Lysander so that we could run away together. There was no way I'd let them take me alive.

"Let me go! …Lysander! Please don't leave me!

"Calm down!" Father lunged to hold me still but I flapped my limbs fervently, never once backing down. He quickly hit a red emergency button on the wall as I swatted at him, kicked out, screamed, cried, and probably broke the rest of my rib cage contorting my body to escape his restraints.

"I won't let you do this!" My voice was cracked and worn, and in a flash I was surrounded by strange people in hospital scrubs who took my flailing limbs and held them down, binding me to the bed and rendering me paralyzed. Reading the minds of the doctor that stood in front of me with an intimidating syringe, I knew they were going to sedate me. Father just watched on as I thrashed and pleaded with them.

"I hate you!" I spat at him.

He cringed at my words, and crossed his arms with a frown. "Hate me if you have to, Luna…"

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH!" The nurses held my arm still as they inserted the needle into my vein, and I screamed at the top of my lungs, refusing to give in and go down.

"Lysander! Help me!"

I focused my eyes on the last place Lysander was and just before the darkness consumed me I blinked and saw him on the ground out in the hallway, his back against the wall and his hands in his hair as he watched me hysterically, tears streaming down his face._ 'I'm so sorry, Lunabelle…I'm so, so sorry…'_

* * *

**A/N: Part 2 is nearing its end, and part 3 is on its way in, bringing a world of changes for Lysander and Luna. Get ready, because this is truly only the beginning! : ) **


	28. Chapter Twenty Seven

**Chapter Twenty Seven: It's Not Goodbye**

The worst day of my life passed in agonizing hours that felt more like years. Every second crept on mockingly.

A part of me couldn't wait to see Lysander on Sunday morning; father confiscated every form of communication from me and I was going crazy without any way to contact him. Another part of me wanted to die every single time I thought about what I'd have to do. Saying goodbye to Lysander seemed impossible.

All of me was waiting to wake up from the nightmare.

We left the hospital on Saturday morning after I slept the entire night from the sedation. My pain medication caused me to have strange, torturous dreams of Lysander. It was literally just a continual image of him lying in his bed, staring at the ceiling. Occasionally he'd pick up the picture frame I made him for Christmas and crack a smile, and a few times he got up to flip through his notebook with a pen, scribbling aimlessly on the crisp white pages, but that was it. It was somewhat soothing for me to see him in my dreams, but the anguish that I could feel as I watched him was practically unbearable. When I finally woke up the next morning I was silent and scorned, refusing help and closing my mouth and mind to father and anyone else that wasn't Lysander.

My appetite was nonexistent, and the next night I didn't sleep a wink. I entertained the idea of slipping into the night and never looking back, but father was always watching, even if I couldn't see him. He was just torturing me by not doing away with the trellis altogether.

Father packed my things for me; all I could do was lie in bed and stare at my walls. He muttered something about not needing many clothes, since I'd have to wear a uniform, but grabbed all of my favorite articles anyway. The only things I made sure to prepare to take myself were pictures of Lysander and I and my promise ring, but that never left my finger.

I didn't want to take my medication…the pain in my chest from my broken ribs served as a diversion from the pain of my broken heart. I rightfully couldn't sleep, and when the sun rose I was awake to watch it sneak over the horizon.

Father knocked on my door to wake me up shortly after the darkness was swallowed by Sunday.

"Did you take your medicine yet?" He asked when he realized that I had either stayed up all night or had already been up for a while, to which I nodded my head.

_Lies._

It was just my way of grieving, and I didn't need him ruining that, too.

He walked over to the window and peered outside. When he sighed and rolled his eyes I caught a glimpse of his thoughts and jumped up, my ribs seething but my heart pounding when I glanced out and saw Lysander standing out on the sidewalk waiting for me.

"Don't run; you're not supposed to exert yourself!" Father called after me, but my legs wouldn't stop until I reached my destination.

I threw myself through the front door, down the steps and across the snow-chapped grass, tears flying off my face as Lysander caught me in his arms, wrapping me gently as I poured my devastation into his shoulder.

'_Lunabelle…I've missed you.' _I heard him think as he kissed my head. I decided at that moment that I wasn't going to let go of him, and grabbed fistfuls of his coat in my hands. He kept me in his arms and let me cry, stoic and strong where I was weak and feeble.

'_I can't do this, Lysander.' _I looked up to him, to those eyes that I fell in love with on my first day of school.

'_You're much stronger than you think you are, you know.'_ He traced my jaw line with his finger, and I could see him choking back tears. More than anything, I didn't want to see him cry.

'_What am I going to do without you?' _

Lysander cracked a painful smile and wiped my tears with his thumb_. 'With or without me I truly believe you'll continue to shine bright and carry on. I'll be right here waiting for you, and no matter how many miles separate us, we'll get through this together. I promise you that, Luna.'_

'_I know…but I can't live without you.' _I shook my head. I was so weak…why couldn't I be strong like Lysander?

'_And I can't live without you. But you won't be alone. You'll never be alone. No matter where you go my love will find you.' _

As I held him tighter and pressed myself against him my breathing hitched. The two broken ribs sent familiar but excruciating shocks through my torso.

"You didn't take your medicine…and you're not sleeping, or eating, are you? Oh Luna, you need to heal. Please promise me that you'll take care of yourself."

I swallowed a hard lump in my throat and tried to nod my head without my brain becoming unhinged and rattling around my skull. "It's hard, Lysander. The pain distracts me from how much it hurts to lose you."

"No one is losing anyone! You'll never lose me; I'll always be right here!" He was trying so hard to be optimistic as he pointed to my heart and then to my head, but his voice was cracking through the tears that he strained to suffocate.

I laid my hand on my heart, speechless as the feeling of it breaking into a million pieces shocked me into silence.

He narrowed his eyes lovingly at me, bringing a finger to my lips. "Smile for me, Lunabelle. Please?" He flashed me a trying grin, and even though it wasn't completely sincere the least I could do was reciprocate. I squeezed out my best attempt at a smile and he leaned in to plant a sweet kiss on it.

We both looked up when we heard the front door open and close in a slam. Father dragged two suitcases down the walkway while Lysander watched him closely, taking a deep breath when he realized how unbearably_ real_ everything was.

"D-do you need any help, Mr. Broderick?" Lysander's voice splintered when he cleared his throat.

Father threw the bags into the backseat of the Jetta and snarled at Lysander, rolling his eyes. "Don't even start, Larkin. No amount of groveling is going to change anything." He stomped back into the house and I was so angry with him. _He didn't have to be rude…_

"I'm sorry, Lysander…" I began to cry again, and he hushed me with a soft hand on my back.

'_He has every right to hate me, Luna…'_

'_No he doesn't! You didn't do anything wrong!' _I looked up at him, shaking my head at his rash thought.

I knew that Lysander begged to differ, but he quickly dismissed the topic all together and instead zeroed his red, glossy gaze on mine. He took his thumb and traced my face, wiping away the infinite tears that burned my cheeks. I couldn't stop watching him and found myself falling in love with him all over again as his eyes narrowed in that way that I loved. I was taking in all of his little mannerisms before it was too late; before I'd be missing them.

Father slammed the door again, this time with Apollo's cage in his hands. The little canary tried to steady himself on his perch while father swung him carelessly, handing the cage to Lysander. "Take your bird back; otherwise I'm just going to set it free." He mumbled, and Lysander secured the cage in his arms with a steely nod.

"Apollo…" I sniffled, looking into the cage at my poor bird. I hadn't even thought about what would happen to him. A part of me had assumed I'd just take him with me.

"Apollo will keep me company while you're gone, isn't that right, little friend?" Lysander said to the canary in a sweet sing-song voice, "We'll be here waiting for you, Luna. I'll take good care of him."

I grabbed onto Lysander once more as he set Apollo's cage down on the sidewalk. Father's steps could be heard behind us on the walkway and his voice soon rang through my mind. _'Wrap it up Luna. I want to beat the morning traffic.' _

My heart sank; I just wanted to take Lysander's hand and run away right there and then, but I knew I couldn't. I admired him for the last time before I knew father would rip me away, and my heart broke further when I noticed that he was wearing the exact outfit that he had on the first day I'd seen him. Had he meant to? No, it was purely cruel coincidence.

His long black embroidered jacket with the buttons, a white dress shirt under the tight button-up vest, fitted black slacks tucked into his tall rider boots, and that ascot that I loved so much, the teal one that he wore the most…he was so handsome in every way.

Lysander looked down at the ascot tied around his neck and began to untie it while I watched on in confusion. Once he pulled it from his shirt he began to wrap it around my neck and I tried to stop him.

"No…this one is your favorite!"

He smirked and shook his head. "No,_ you're_ my favorite. Will you hold on to it for me? Please?"

I couldn't help but to break down as I reached to feel the soft material. I just nodded my head, plunging my hand down under my sweater to grab for the cowry shell necklace that hung from my neck. I always wore it, and it was there just like the teal ascot on the day we met. Pulling it off over my head, I draped it over Lysander and he gawked down at it, reaching to hold the little shell in his hands.

"Collateral." I choked, trying to smile.

When I saw Lysander nod his head, stifling on unbidden tears I was done. This time he reached for me, pulling me to his chest and nuzzling his head on my shoulder as I held the back of his head. He was still holding his emotions in and it was a marvel to me. I couldn't for a second stop myself from soaking his jacket with mine.

'_I promise I'll get this back to you as soon as I can, but until then I'll wear it every day.'_

I looked up to him, blinking the blurriness away and cupping his face in my hands as he stared hypnotized in my gaze. _'I love you.'_

'_I love you so much, Luna. I'll…I'll find a way to make things right again.'_ His hands found mine and he brought them to his mouth to kiss them.

The sincerity in his eyes was inspiring, and as I tried to string together more thoughts to match his I heard the front door slam and cringed when father's eyes burned me from behind.

"**It's time to go."** He barked, never missing a step as he walked to the car and got in the driver's seat. _No, I'm not ready yet! That wasn't enough time! I didn't even beg you to reconsider yet! _

I looked up to Lysander, hoping he would have a plan to juice more time out of the rock that kept us stuck in the middle of that and a hard place. He swallowed a lump in his throat and his hand clasped over mine. There were no words. We both knew that there just wasn't a way we could escape the inevitable, and our reluctant feet led us to the car.

I refused to sit in the front beside my father. My bags were crammed in the backseat, but there was a little square that I could squeeze my body. Lysander took direction from my thoughts and unwillingly opened the door for me.

I was paralyzed, gaping in disbelief at my bags, at the back of father's head as he tapped his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel, and then over my shoulder at my_ home_. Home wasn't just the house that I'd grown to love; home was wherever Lysander and I were together. _Home was Lysander._ How was I supposed to leave?

"Come on, Luna. Today, please." Father groaned, and I lunged to cling onto Lysander. I was simply not strong enough, but Lysander was, and he closed his eyes tight, gently trying to coax me into the car.

'_I want you to promise me you'll take care of yourself, Lunabelle.'_

'_Lysander, no! I can't…I can't say goodbye to you!' _No, I absolutely couldn't. I was going to be sick.

'_It's not goodbye Luna. It's never goodbye…I'll see you soon, okay?' _

I fell down onto the cloth seat, the wetness blurring my vision as I reached for him. He leaned in to brush his dry lips against my forehead, and I pulled him to me by his jacket collar, delivering one last devastating kiss to his lips. He reached to hold me still, snaking his fingers through my hair and kissing me back with everything that he had.

_Just one more kiss, and one more after that... _

"That's enough!" Father roared, reaching back to grab my door's handle and slamming it shut, Lysander narrowly moved himself out of the way. I smacked my hands against the window with a gasp as Lysander watched on wide-eyed, and the car clicked when father locked the door before I could throw myself out.

With his swift movement he pressed his foot on the gas and began to accelerate. I climbed to look out the back window, watching Lysander start to reach his hand out to me, seeming to struggle for breath.

'_I love you!' _I heard his voice in my head once more.

'_I love you Lysander!' _I pushed to him through hysterical tears just before father started off down the road.

I watched the boy that I loved, my best friend, and my safe place to run disappear out the back window; I watched him stand there and watch me, those beautiful eyes burning their hypnotizing image into my mind just one more time. I watched them glaze red and overflow with tears, and I waited to close my eyes until I couldn't see them anymore. With my first blink, all I saw was green and yellow.

* * *

**A/N: And so ends Part II of Only We Know. What surprises await us in the second half of the story? I'm super excited…just saying. **

**Sorry for the delay, yet again! You know how life is. I've hardly been on to reply to PMs or read any updated fanfictions, and I apologize! I'll definitely try to catch up this week. **

**Thank you all for your riveting support, as always. **

**I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!**


	29. Chapter Twenty Eight

**Part III**

**The grim consequences of their misfortunate throw our star-crossed, sixth-sensed lovers through the wringer as they find themselves without each other for the first time, the world that only they know ceasing to rotate temporarily. **

**Part three introduces a whole new world, with new faces and trouble around every corner. How long can Luna and Lysander stand to be apart? And how much will they risk to be together again?**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Eight: Stubborn and Persistent**

St. Catherine's Academy was exactly what you'd imagine a Catholic boarding school to look like. Big and regal, red brick, pointy gables, trimmed topiary hedges, and an aesthetically pleasing welcome sign nestled under a cherry blossom tree, I absolutely _hated_ it the minute we arrived. If there was an exact opposite to Sweet Amoris High School, this was it.

Father parked in the visitor's section and didn't hesitate to get my bags from the backseat. I silently refused to leave the car and he had to pull me to my feet as gently as he could while I fell back down several times as dead weight. Once he finally got me up he angrily muttered something under his breath about my ribs while I tried to plant my feet firmly on the ground.

It must've been embarrassing for father to have to drag his hysterical seventeen year-old daughter into the school by her wrist, but I didn't care. "You're being a brat, Luna..." He kept hissing on our way through the solid mahogany doors.

The main foyer smelled like burnt snickerdoodles and it probably would've made my eyes water if I hadn't already been crying. Fortunately for father it was practically empty; I didn't care at that point if anybody saw my breakdown. I didn't care what anyone thought about me here, and I certainly wasn't in the mood to keep up appearances.

Through blurry hot tears I blinked at two silhouettes that made their way to us. When I rubbed my eyes I almost pointed out the irony of the first people to greet us here at the _all-girls_ boarding school being male, but kept the observation to myself. The older version of the two stuck out his hand to my father with a welcoming grin while the younger one who looked to be about my age hid behind his senior, gawking at me with wide brown eyes under tufts of thick brunet hair. I might have scowled at him, judging by the way his eyes hit the linoleum floor, but I didn't mean to be rude. My emotions were completely out of control and I didn't care in the least to read his thoughts to confirm how uncomfortable I was making him feel.

"Mr. Broderick and Luna, we've been expecting you! I'm Robert Nolan, headmaster of St. Catherine's and the Byron Academy for Boys across the street where my son Drew attends." He patted the timid brunette on the back and smiled down at him. "Drew here is shadowing me today, so he'll be joining us on our tour. Say hello, son."

I didn't care to know Drew so I shifted my eyes to the ground.

"Hello." He coughed, equally as eager to meet me.

I wiped my tears as father enthusiastically introduced himself to both of them with a strong handshake.

It didn't matter that I was shaking and sniffling, or that tears streamed down my cheeks in burning spurts. Headmaster Nolan ignored me like I wasn't even there, and father put untrue words in my mouth like, "Luna is so pleased to be here" and "I'm sure Luna will love her dorm room" as if he were interpreting for his poor, mute daughter. No one seemed to care that I was resisting and that my father had to pull me down the hallways like a toddler. No, it wasn't anyone's problem but my own.

Well actually, I take that back. Drew definitely cared, and he tried to hide his awkward staring ineffectively. He looked at me as if he'd never seen a girl so reckless before in his life and tried to avoid me like the plague, probably convinced that I may lash out at him if he wasn't careful.

I guess we took a quick tour of the school, but I didn't pay attention through my constant hysteria. The entire place was empty, and I think I heard something about how all of the students were in the dining hall for brunch which reminded me that I'd be living here and made me sick to my stomach.

Eventually we found our way back to the lobby after father blabbed to the Nolans that my ribs were broken and I couldn't overexert myself. He quickly dashed away to get my bags from the car, toting the headmaster with him and leaving me alone with Mr. Awkward himself, Drew.

Drew just stood there, his eyes fixed firmly on the ground as I curled my fists up in the sleeves of my sweater and used the soft cotton to wipe my itchy eyes, looking over at him surreptitiously. He was so _plain_…so painfully _plain_ that it almost made him stand out. His _plain_ brown eyes stole exactly three glances at me while I sized him up._ Plain_, flat, straight brown hair covered his _plain_ eyes just slightly, and his _plain _navy and grey school uniform was wrinkled in a way that would've made Lysander cringe. I realized in that moment that I much preferred the vibrant alternative to Drew Nolan; mismatched eyes, ashy hair, and perfectly pressed Victorian clothes.

_God…I miss Lysander so much._

When our fathers finally relieved the tension in the room with their loud voices they dropped my bags on the marble floor in the lobby with a sense of accomplishment. My father threw his arms around me instantly, pulling me in for a hug and giving me excuse after excuse in his head for why he was in such a rush to leave me. I stood there, just as silent as I'd been to him since Friday.

'_I know you're mad at me Luna, but someday you may thank me. I'm only looking out for you. I love you so much.' _

'_I love you…but this isn't the right decision. You're making a big mistake. I'm going to be miserable here.'_

He ignored my comment and patted my head, turning to Mr. Nolan and Drew with a smile before reaching down to grab my bags.

"That won't be necessary Mr. Broderick. I know you're a busy man. I'll see you out while Drew brings Miss Luna's things to the dorms." He walked over to escort my father out, who turned back and waved to me once more before disappearing out the doors.

Just like that, he was gone, and I was alone. With father out of the picture I watched the last fleck of my life be hacked away by the sharp knife of change.

Out of the corner of dewy eyes I caught Drew bending down to reach for my bags.

"I'll get them," I muttered, my voice cracking with my first spoken words since leaving Lysander as I grabbed for the handle in his hands. I didn't need his help or his pity.

He shook his head, his shifty eyes meeting mine with sincerity. "It's no problem…"

He hoisted one of the suitcases up and as he lunged to get the second one I snatched it up. "Yes, well I can still manage on my own, thank you."

"P-please…" He tugged _my_ bag out of _my_ hand and held it in his other hand, stepping out of the way when I tried to reach to take them back. "I'm just following orders. You're hurt, and these bags are heavy…"

I stomped my foot in protest and angrily chased after him as he started through the doors and across the courtyard. "I said I'd get them! I'm perfectly capable!"

He tried to ignore me, and every time I caught up with him it seemed as though his long legs would send him five strides ahead of me. We came to a large brick building and climbed the steps, me balling up my fists, watching Drew sweat bullets at my protests as he tried to ignore me.

"Drop the bags at once! You're only making me angry!" I finally caught up to him and instinctively grabbed onto his blazer. He turned around with a sigh and met my gaze again, his eyes widening.

"You are impossibly stubborn! Your room is just up these stairs, it's really not a problem!" His voice was louder now, as if looking into my eyes had suddenly made him more comfortable. Usually my dark eyes had the opposite effect on people.

"Well, it's a problem for me," I whined as Drew kept on walking. He turned to me again, huffing even louder this time.

"And what exactly is the problem? It's obvious you need help…you're just too proud to ask for it. Look at you. You're a mess!"

"I…I beg your pardon?" I clutched my chest, a little staggered by his sudden audacity, to say the least.

"What's the matter, no one's ever been honest with you before?"

I stopped for a moment, tears swimming in my eyes as I stood shocked and dismayed before shaking my head and jogging to catch up with him.

"Lots of people are honest with me." I crossed my arms and tossed my head, my hormones twisting me into a bolder, braver Luna than ever before.

If only he knew just how honest the world was with me! In fact, the only reason I wasn't in his head reading his secrets was because I didn't care in the least to know or see them.

"Well then, congratulations, because you just found another person to add to your list."

I sniffed, hating everything about this place even more now. "I…I just want to carry my bags"

"Yeah, well we can't always get what we want."

I started rubbing my eyes again with countless thoughts of how Lysander wouldn't stand for the way Drew was talking to me. He wasn't here to stand up for me and I'd have to be a big girl and defend myself. The problem was, I didn't know how. I felt isolated.

Drew sighed, coming to a door at the end of the long hallway and pushing it open, dropping my bags down at the middle and turning to me. "Listen, I don't know what you're going through, but…"

"No, you don't. You have no idea."

Drew's wide cheekbones fell as he watched me take a breath and look around what I presumed was my new jail cell.

"I…I'm sorry." He glanced to me from the sides of his eyes and shrugged, "D-do you want to talk about it?"

"What?"

"I um, asked if you needed to talk about it…isn't that what girls do? Talk?"

I tisked aloud, crossing my arms and put my head down. "I just don't want to be here."

Drew walked over to me, attempting to pass me a liberating smirk. "It's not that bad, you know."

"Oh but it is," I said, widening my eyes at him.

"You'll warm up to it…" He persisted.

"I'm quite certain I won't."

He crossed his arms, suddenly searching my eyes. "And what makes you so sure?"

"I'd be willing to bet my life on it. Can we just leave it at that, please?" I snapped, looking over to him with utmost solemnity.

Drew nodded, silent for a few fleeting moments before clearing his throat. "D-Do you need any help unpacking?"

"No. You can leave now." I didn't need any more of his pity or wisecracks.

He took a few steps through the room, pointing his finger as he talked. "Fine, suit yourself. Just to let you know the bathrooms and showers are down the hall this way, and there's a computer in the corner there. It's nothing fancy, just the standard issue Dell, but you can use it for your schoolwork and email."

"Email?"

"Um, yeah. You know, like virtual messaging?" He looked at me like I was dumb and I gritted my teeth at him.

"No, I know what email is. Wh-what would I need email for?"

"For staying in touch with family and friends…did you think we'd make you get a carrier pigeon or something?"

"So I can email _anybody?_" _…Even Lysander? _

"I mean, yeah…"

In that moment I wanted to wipe my tears away and jump up and down in continuous joy, but I was still crying, still paralyzed, and still heartbroken as I pulled arms in when a cold draft came dancing through the window of the room.

"Are you sure you don't need any help unpacking?" Drew offered once again.

"I've got it."

"Okay…well, before the day ends you'll have to go down to the office and get your schedule and uniform. I can go now and pick it up for you if you'd like…" _Oh my god, he's relentless! _

"I'll be fine going myself."

Drew nodded to himself, walking to the door and clutching the wooden frame before looking back at me with a playful smirk. "You're just about as stubborn as they come, you know."

"And you're just as persistent. It's a good thing we attend separate schools, hm?" I crossed my arms and shot him a serious glare.

"Yep. And on that note, I'm going to go. Try to smile once and a while, Luna." He shot me a strange glance before turning to close my door and exit, leaving me completely and utterly alone.

In a flash I was at the computer desk, clicking and clacking away until I managed to open up the web browser that took me to my email. Thoughtlessly I began to write to him and didn't want ever want to stop. The only thing that allowed me to tie off the first letter was the fact that the sooner I sent it, the sooner he'd reply.

**From: Luna Broderick  
To: Lysander Larkin  
Sent: Sun, Jan 27, 2013 10:35am  
Subject: Lysander3**

_Lysander! It's me! It's Lunabelle :) I hope this finds you well and soon._

_I can email you whenever I please, isn't that wonderful? Well, 'wonderful' isn't quite sufficient in describing anything today, but it's certainly as wonderful as things could possibly be at this point._

_Everything has happened so fast…I'm surprised I'm still wide awake, aware and standing. I never imagined I'd know the pain of a broken heart, but it's so painfully real and killing me already. How did I even get here? How did this happen? All I know is that I'm crying and heartbroken and hurting, wrapped up in a scarf that smells like you and shivering in the bitter cold that seeps through the cracks in the window of my new jail cell._

_I think I'm just going to cry until they get tired of me and send me back home. I need you. I need the sunshine of our world and I need your eyes and your smile. I just don't see myself lasting very long here._

_What I wouldn't do for just one more day with you, Lysander…_

_One more day to clamber through the brush and duck under the tree limbs, one more day to discover our world all over again and roll around in the grass, and one more day to kiss every inch of you and curl up in your strong arms…I'd do anything for just one more day._

_I love you every second, Lysander. You're everything. There is nothing and no one on this earth that takes your place and there never will be._

_Don't you dare forget that I love you._

_-Luna_

After sending the email and staring at the computer screen refreshing until my fingertips felt bruised I decided to give him a little more time. I felt better when I looked at the clock on the bottom of the computer screen and realized that only five minutes had pasted; they'd only seemed like hours. Every second slipped on like hours, and my head was pounding with the thought of the months ahead of me that I'd have to spend here.

My body pulled me to the creaky bed in the corner of the room and I fell down on top of it, shoes and all as the tears rolled out from behind my eyes uncontrollably. I was surprised I had any left to spare.

I curled up in a ball and felt the familiar slither of pain all around me. It was everywhere; in, out, under, over…suffocating me, sucking life and breath like leaches on every square inch of my body. Every nerve ending that made me up was a live wire; this pain was arguably worse than electrocution.

Grief and regret washed over me for a senior year tragically edited. My mind wasn't thinking of the future where Lysander and I could be together because I was so focused on _now_, and _now_ Lysander and I weren't together. I wasn't used to being away from him…I hadn't been without him since we'd met, and I honestly didn't remember how to live without him.

A shrill little blip jolted me from my emotional reverie and I picked up my head, looking over my shoulder to the computer and reading the lit-up screen.

**1 NEW MESSAGE**

I fumbled over the bed, messing up the sheets as I threw myself to the hardwood and into the chair.

_Lysander! He's written back!_

**From: Lysander Larkin **

**To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Sun, Jan 27, 2013 10:47am  
Subject: Re: Lysander3**

_My love, you simply have no idea how happy hearing from you made me. Words will not suffice in exchange for your beautiful voice in my head or your kiss on my lips, but I'm fortunate for the ability to talk with you. That's all I could ever ask for in this situation. _

_Tell me everything about your new school! Is everyone being nice to you?_

_You said it's cold in your room? Please talk to someone about having it repaired at once, and remind them that you are currently trying to heal from an injury and cannot afford to catch a cold. And did you take your medicine yet? If not, please do so for me. I can't tell you how important it is to me that you get healthy again. _

_I want you to do something else for me, Luna. It will only take a moment._

_Look around you._

_What do you see? _

_Walls, a bed, a closet, maybe? The computer and desk. _

_All tangible things, I'm sure. Just like you and I. Really, we're only blood and water held together with skin._

_Look in your heart. What do you feel? _

_When I look inside my heart, I feel you. The only thing that keeps me strong is the feelings that you've left in my heart. _

_You're all around me; when I look hard enough I can find you wherever I go. The faint warmth shining down on my skin is you; it reminds me of the way your hair catches the sunlight. The grass is you. Just the faintest smell of grass reminds me of lying with you for hours in our world. The wind, the moon, the goat-shaped clouds and strawberry Poptarts; it's all you, all around me. __It's no substitute for holding your warm body in my arms. It's definitely not collateral for your kiss, or your heartbeat against mine...but it helps to know that I'm never really alone, and neither are you. _

_Luna, you will never be alone. We could be a million miles apart and you'd never be alone. I'll be with you wherever you are if only you'd just take a hard look around. I'll be the sunshine, the light of the moon, the pictures in your mind and the beat of your heart. I'll be the warmth of your blanket when you're wrapped up in your bed missing me...and I hope I can always be the smile on your face. _

_Lay your precious head down, my love. You should take a nap; you need your rest. Sing to yourself the lullabies that I would sing to you if I were there. Wrap yourself in your blanket, because I promise you that it's me, holding you tight as best as I can until we're together again. _

_I'll love you every day until forever- and every day after that. _

_Love, _

_Lysander _

* * *

**A/N: You guys ready for part three? It's going to be quite the ride, and I'm quite certain none of you have any idea what's to come, even if you think you dooooo. Muahaha. **

**A special thanks to binaryguppy for being my main squeeze and keeping my head on straight through this entire story. You're amazing and none of this would be possible without your support and help. A big**** thank you to IfYouLovedMe for being awesome this week, too! **

**And of course to ALL of you incredible readers for your reviews that seriously never fail to make me smile...I cannot tell you how much you all mean to me. If I could marry you all I would...except that's like, super illegal and stuff. :( Ah, I never miss a chance to be creepy, do I? LET ME LOVE YOU! **

**XOXO**

**Exactlyamanda**


	30. Chapter Twenty Nine

**Chapter Twenty Nine: Misery Loves Company **

* * *

I'm surprised I didn't wear my fingers down to the bone; Lysander and I exchanged what felt like a million words through email while I chased tear-chapped exhaustion as far into the night as he'd let me. He finally persuaded me to lie down a few hours before sunrise, but the prospect of sleep didn't appeal to me until I actually closed my sticky eyes and saw my favorite bicolored pair staring right back at me from behind my weary lids.

While I slept I discovered that there _was_ a way I could still see Lysander; he'd come to me in my dreams every night, I knew he would.

***WEEEEEOOOOONNNGG* *****WEEEEEOOOOONNNG***

_Whoa! What on earth is that noise!?_

The sun teetered between dusk and dawn when I shot up out of bed the next morning, startled by this _terrible_ synthesized wailing that bellowed through the halls like sirens. _An alarm?_ _Is the school on fire?_ Maybe I was a bit eager to assume the worst, grabbing for my bathrobe and running out into the corridor.

The loud noise soon faded out into nothing more than a ringing in my ears, and I glanced down the empty hallway, turning helplessly when I noticed a middle-aged woman in heels approaching me with a warm smile.

"Excuse me," I stammered all over the place, running a shaky hand through my hair and looking behind me as a few girls shuffled out of their rooms towards the bathroom. "I-is everything okay?"

"Luna, right? I'm Ms. Allen, your hall advisor. I see your first wake-up call went well! They'll sound every fifteen minutes until seven. If you planned to take a shower I suggest you do it now."

"O-oh," I hummed tiredly, rubbing my eyes and nodding my head._Nothing is on fire. No one is dead. _"Th-thank you."

_Every fifteen minutes until seven. Every morning. _

_Splendid. _

I staggered back to my room without another word, closing the door and sitting down at the computer, a quickly developed habit. It took me a couple of blinks to get my eyes to adjust to the screen, but soon I was forgetting all about the horrors of St. Catherine's morning rituals and smiling to myself as I pulled up my email so that I could write Lysander a good-morning-message to wake up to.

I should have known he'd beat me to it.

**From: Lysander Larkin **

**To: Luna Broderick **

**Sent: Mon, Jan 28, 2013 5:56am**

**Subject: Good Morning!**

_Good morning, beautiful. How did you sleep? _

_It seems as though I've become quite the hypocrite. I couldn't sleep a wink last night, but don't worry about me; Leigh keeps the refrigerator stoked with energy drinks so I'll get through. :)_

_I hope you'll have a pleasant first day of class. It's a good thing there aren't any boys at the school...in your uniform and saddle shoes you must look so adorable. But then again, I'm talking to the girl that could look beautiful wearing a paper bag...or lack thereof. ;)_

_I miss you. I don't want to go to school without you, but I'll keep my eyes on the future where we can be together forever, everyday. _

_Do you remember what I asked you right before we fell asleep the first night you spent with me? Of course you do. Unlike me, you remember everything. You'll still move in with me, right? I do hope so._

_Have a wonderful day, my Lunabelle. I'll be here after school to hear all about it. _

_I love you so much. _

_Lysander_

He wasn't sleeping...

The rest of his email subconsciously made my heart smile, but the simple fact that Lysander hadn't gotten a single second of rest sent me into panic mode. My poor Lysander...he must've been exhausted. I wanted to blame myself. I wanted to find a way to take all of his pain and add it to my own; I wanted to carry it for him so that he wouldn't have to. He just didn't deserve to; he'd never deserve to.

I promised him I wouldn't sleep another night until I was sure he could do the same. If he couldn't sleep, I owed it to him to at least stay up to keep him company. I'd do anything for him.

How I condensed the rest of my loving reply into a few paragraphs is beyond me. I could've kept on writing forever, but I knew that if I sat and waited for him I'd be glued to the computer all day long. Even though there wasn't a single fleck of life in my soul that wanted to get dressed and leave this room, I somehow managed to pull myself from the desk to do just that.

My nauseous worrying lingered, and I reached down in a daze to open the suitcase on the floor before remembering that I didn't need to pick an outfit today...or any day for that matter. No, someone had already picked out my outfit for the entire _semester_, and I absolutely hated it. A gray pleated skirt, white undershirt, and navy blue blazer complete with black knee-high socks, it was your generic schoolgirl uniform. The black and white saddle shoes that came with it were doable, but still not even worth it.

Clothes and fashion, putting outfits together, pairing things and coming up with combinations...it was just my thing. Now I couldn't even have that anymore. Every trace of who I was just continued to disappear right before my very eyes.

I slipped on the crisp new clothes unwillingly, wincing at the way the cheap fabric itched on my skin. Without thinking I found myself tying Lysander's ascot in a bow around my neck; I just couldn't help myself. It certainly didn't hurt that it added a little flair to the sullen ensemble.

I was about ready to scream as the alarm sounded for a third time, rattling all of my thoughts and sending them to the front.

_I'm so worried about Lysander; I hope he doesn't fall asleep during class...I miss him so much._

_I hate this blazer. What is it made of, straw?! You'd think such a swanky school could afford not to skimp on the materials! _

_I might have time to check_ _my email again, just one more time..._

My procrastination was uncontrollable when I realized there was nothing holding me back from heading to my first class. After refreshing my email a few times, tying and re-tying my shoe laces and washing my hands twice, it was time to rip the Band-Aid off and get it over with. My auto-pilot setting occasionally came in handy at times like these; I switched off all emotions and just kind of floated to where I needed to be. I wasn't nervous, or anxious. I didn't worry nor care about making friends and fitting in, and I certainly wasn't eager to learn. There weren't any feelings to keep me from pushing on even though deep down I wanted to curl up and die.

My first three classes were uneventful lectures that passed in those hour-long-minutes that I'd begun to grow used to. Each teacher acknowledged me as the new student once and then left me alone, and my new classmates seemed to care just about as much as I did about my being here.

Lysander's bright ascot stuck out in the sea of conformity, but all I had to do was ramble about how I had this horrible eczema on my neck and no further questions were asked. Even if it earned me a few looks from my new classmates I couldn't have cared any less.

Literature managed to keep me halfway interested, but I could've done without the glaring of Heather Lobell, the girl that sat beside me. If it hadn't been for her uncomfortable eyes and the loud chomping from her chewing on her pen I might've learned a thing or two. Every time I shifted my eyes to acknowledge her she'd just narrow hers tighter, smirking maliciously as the plastic pen cap cracked between her teeth.

I wasn't sure nor did I care why she seemed to set her sights on me, but when we both stood up in unison at the end of class it became apparent that she wasn't done yet. She looked back over her shoulder, tossing wavy raven hair through her fingers as she joined two other girls in the hallway, both of them sandwiching her in the middle and hanging on her words with exuberance.

My breathing hitched when I made an uncomfortable connection; was I about to walk right into St. Catherine's very own Amber Wood? _Just what the doctor ordered!_

I tried to slip out quickly into the hallway, but when she stepped in front of me, swinging her hip into a waiting hand and curling manicured fingernails into her skirt with a grin I knew exactly what to expect.

"The whole naughty-flight-attendant look really isn't doing it for you, hun." Her voice was eager, as if she thought herself quite witty. I winced when I felt her hot breath in my face, but her cheap shot went in one ear and out the other.

There were a thousand words on the tip of my tongue; I wanted her to know that her quips wouldn't break me; just being here already had. I didn't have the energy to deal with petty word play, or even to read her mind for an idea as to why she was targeting me. Instead I just blinked hard and sighed.

She must've mistaken my indifference for weakness, because I swore I saw a fire ignite in her eyes. Turning to collect the approval of her peers she was just as soon flaring her jowls again. "You think you're better than us or something? Why should _you_ get to wear whatever you want?"

I switched off between counting the specs of dirt on the ground and watching her from behind my bangs, declining to answer or argue and patiently waiting for her to finish.

"Are you deaf? I asked you a question."

What she got from me was a shifty, uninterested glance that said, 'yes, I can hear you, but I'm better than this.'

You would have thought I'd slapped her in the face. The flames in her eyes were wild and she cocked her head like a hawk, bringing a dainty finger to her cheek.

"I see how it is...you think you're too good to talk to us, too. Well new girl, you're going to learn pretty quick that I'm all about playing fair, and violating dress code isn't very fair at all, is it?"

I certainly didn't think I was hurting anyone by wearing my ascot; it helped me get through. Why couldn't she just leave me alone?

Lost in thought, I suddenly felt myself being tugged by the neck and gaped in horror at her hand as it tightened on _Lysander's favorite ascot_ in an attempt to rip it off. I sprang into defense, grabbing her wrist and shoving her away, pooling anger into my force before stepping backwards into the wall. I didn't mean to shove her; I'd never in my life done something as rash, but when it came to the only piece of Lysander I had, in my mind all was justified.

At first, she parted her lips in confusion. She seemed shocked, blinking at me as I blinked back. For the shadow of a second I thought I saw her consider backing down, but she collected herself once the gasps of the girls around her registered in her head.

My first words to her came out unfiltered; I just wanted this to stop. "I...I'm sorry. P-please don't touch me. This is special to me..."

I watched her eyelid twitch, giving way to an array of different gestures that made up a truly unforgettable scowl. The way her lips crawled across her teeth told me I'd just made this place a thousand times worse for myself, as if that was even possible.

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" She stomped towards me, digging her nails into her own palms.

"I don't want any trouble..." I muttered under my breath, fluttering my eyelids in disbelief at the situation as I tried to wave her away.

"Is that so? Because you better believe you just found it!" She looked so sickeningly sure of herself...so in her element as she barreled towards me, outstretching her hands and shoving me hard against the wall.

I ricocheted off it with a thud that stole my breath, reminding me just how broken my ribs were. My knees wobbled and then locked up tight even though I wanted nothing more than to collapse on the ground and give up right then and thre. I anticipated more pain, but before Heather could calculate another attack she snapped backwards and turned around to face her friends. Her innocent nonchalance was enraging when a teacher that she must've spotted walked by us, and I found myself wondering how far she would've taken things if she'd had the chance.

Once the hallways started filling with other students I spread wings and chose flight over fight without a second thought. "I-If could just pass by..."

"Oh, I'm sorry! Am I in your way?" She cooed sarcastically, knocking me sideways with her shoulder and licking her lips as she sized me up one last time. I just turned to try again, quickening my pace once she was behind me.

"You're going to wish you never stepped foot in this school, new girl!"

I almost smirked to myself as I kept on walking. _Oh it's a little too late for that, but nice try._

* * *

**A/N: I am SO sorry about the wait on this chapter, guys. Gah, pwease forgive me. **

**Long story short: I had a rough week, and as much as I needed a writing-pick-me-up I just couldn't squeeze it in. I hope I can say with utter sincerity that it won't happen again, and I hope you all still love meeee. **

**Sorry to leave you with such a short filler, but I should have the next chapter out much sooner than this one took, and after that things will start moving along quite nicely . Muahaha...**

**I missed you all so much. You all have no idea how much you mean to me, really. Sometimes life gets messy, and mine is anything but orderly right now but just knowing that I have you guys to write for keeps me pushing on. I couldn't ever begin to thank you enough. **

**Whoa, sappy-alert! Thaaaaat was uncalled for. xD I'm going to stop boring you with cheesy derp now and go write you some more words.**

** LOVE YOOOOU! XOXO**


	31. Chapter Thirty

**Annnnnd I did it again. :( I apologize for taking so long yet again with the update, but my writing is one thing I never want to rush for you guys! **

* * *

**Chapter Thirty: Stairs and Silver Linings**

_Every cloud has a silver lining..._

That's what father used to say whenever I was feeling down. _'It means that in every bad situation there is an element of good, a glimmer of hope peeking out from behind the darkness...' _

It was a nice idea, and back when losing a flip flop to the waves was considered 'a bad situation', going out to get a brand new pair was undoubtedly silver. There was _some_ verity to the expression, sure...not enough to make it true, though.

Personally, I preferred a more honest version of the classic saying: _Some clouds might have a silver lining...if you're lucky._

Most clouds are just clouds. Most bad situations are _just bad._..like mine. There was no element of good here. No silver lining. In two weeks I'd yet to see even the slightest flicker of it. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Every single day I'd think to myself, 'things can't possibly get any worse...' and then they just _would._ Life never missed out on a chance to get worse. The days just rolled on by, each one more terrible than the last.

Where did I find the strength to keep going? I couldn't take any of the credit. If it weren't for Lysander, I would've gone crazy. The only thing that kept me moving forward was his lingering presence all around me. He was always with me; in my heart, on my lips, and through countless memories that I kept on replay in my mind.

Every day things got worse; that was true. Every day took me further from the last time I'd seen Lysander...but he never stopped reminding me that each of those days also brought us closer to being together again. If there was a silver lining, I suppose it had to be the fact that I wouldn't be here forever. As soon as this was over I'd never have to leave Lysander again.

It certainly felt like forever, though...especially considering that it was only my fourteenth day at St. Catherine's Academy.

Sneaking around had become a recurring theme in my life, and just like every day I was on my way to hide behind bookshelves and flip through Shakespeare in the library until the bell rang. The less time I spent out in the open, the better.

Warm light poured through the windows that lined the corridor, illuminating everything with a lively glow. The stained glass was a filter, catching sunbeams and turning them into vibrant colors that reflected off of every flat surface.

The girl I used to be would've stopped to take it all in, even if she was in a rush. She would've found inspiration in the way the colors danced on the carpet at her feet, shamelessly dancing along with them to watch it all swirl together around her.

I wanted to be her again...be _myself_ again, but depression kept that part of me locked away and the key was back home in Amoris. The closed-off cynic I'd become was only irritated by the scene, and my eyes darted back and forth in an attempt to find and identify any flaw that I could. There was a speck of dust on the window sill, and one frayed thread of the thousands in the curtains spoke volumes. A dime-sized stain on the carpet, a chip in the paint on the wall...I was suddenly hyperconscious of everything down to the microorganisms that I pictured crawling all over everything that was beautiful just to make it ugly.

I couldn't bring myself to appreciate anything about this place, and so I just kept on walking.

Constantly on alert, my ears caught a faint murmuring in the distance...voices and footsteps approaching from behind me. I would've recognized Heather's exaggerated lisp immediately; I'm always anticipating our next encounter. Even though I knew it wasn't her, there was still this urgency to avoid being seen.

Whoever it was, they were loud, laughing and chattering amongst each other and my stomach twisted around the banana that I had forced down in the dining hall only minutes ago.

"Where the hell is Heather?" A pitchy voice blurted. My hair stood up on end at the mention of her name and I started taking longer strides, driving myself forward swiftly.

"I'm pretty sure she's on her way here now..."

On that note, I was lunging for the door in front of me in a last-minute change of plans. The library would have to wait; I wouldn't make it there before Heather showed up and anything was worth evading her...even the stairs.

As it turned out, staircases and broken ribs didn't mix well; I much preferred taking the elevator. Unfortunately, choosing the lesser of two evils meant braving the obstacle in front of me.

My fingers grasped the railing and I was surprised that my strong grip didn't dent the hollow metal as I pulled myself up. Conquering the first flight wasn't comfortable, but I wouldn't let myself feel it until I reached the landing. I stopped to gather myself, taking a deep breath and turning to get a look at the next set of stairs I'd have to vanquish before doing so. While my eyes followed them slowly to the top, the sudden sound of more approaching footsteps from made my breathing hitch. All I could do was start up the stairs and hope that whoever was approaching could pass by me without a word.

When she rounded the corner and our eyes locked...I knew that was too much to ask.

Her stare dipped down to my shoes and right back up. I didn't mean to gasp, but my shock was obvious and a wicked grin crossed her mouth upon sensing it.

_When can I catch a break? This just isn't fair..._

"Oh, what do we have here?" Heather's mocking tone made me clench my teeth so hard they should've cracked.

Just like a grizzly bear, she could _smell_ fear, and I knew better than to try to run. As always I did my very best to ignore her and started up the stairs again, blowing out an audible sigh.

"I never see you at lunch, Luna. Are you avoiding me or something?" She pouted sarcastically and I rolled my eyes, pulling myself up to the landing where she leapt forward. Any time I'd try to pass her she'd move her body to block me, winding my nerves that much tighter.

"I-if you could just_ please_ excuse me..."

"No, excuse _me_!"

It happened so fast that I didn't have time to react. In one swift movement I watched Heather wind her arms back and throw them towards me. The next thing I knew I was falling backwards, my heart flying into the pit of my stomach.

My back hit the stairs and hysterical panic washed over me, every attempt to catch myself only hurling me harder. I tumbled head over heels until I landed at the bottom with a loud smack that sounded especially terrible when accompanied by echoing laughter

The initial shock was numbing; for just a moment I didn't feel anything at all. My eyes stayed clamped shut, and with my first gasping breath came a blow to the ribs that compared only to the one that first broke them. I let out a pathetic whimper as I drew myself into a tight ball.

"Gosh Luna, you're so clumsy!" Heather called out from the top, before stomping up the stairs in a fit of giggles.

I wasn't sure how much time I passed just laying there doubled over with pain before I felt a hand on my shoulder. _No...please, no more. I give up._

I should've been thankful when I opened my eyes to a pair of beige boat shoes...it wasn't Heather crouched over me after all.

It was someone possibly even worse.

I blinked up at wrinkled khakis, a navy blazer, twitchy lips, and unmistakably wide brown eyes full of sympathy that belonged to no one but Drew, the persistent son of Headmaster Nolan that I'd had the pleasure of meeting when I first arrived here.

"Luna, a-are you okay?!" His voice was worn as if he hadn't spoken in a while...but weirdly smooth at the same time; and almost sweet, like honey. It_ infuriated_ me.

I stuck my hand out, trying to act like I was perfectly fine...like I just threw myself down a flight of stairs for fun. My attempted nonchalance was poorly executed; I could barely breathe, let alone talk, and in place of words I started waving my arms at him, shaking my head and chomping down so hard on my lip I could taste blood. _Just go away...please just go away. Oh god, this is so humiliating._

Drew just shook his head and inched closer to me.

"Come on; let's get you to the nurse." He said, attempting to snake his arms under my bent knees and knocking me straight into an anesthetized panic.

I jumped away, frantically brushing the hair from my face. "Nu-no...I'm fine!"

I wasn't fine, though. I knew that. Standing up was unimaginable...my whole body hurt and as much as I hated to admit it, I needed help. Tears started down my face and it made me angry that I was crying, so I just cried some more. I just wanted to be strong...why couldn't I be strong?

"Don't be stubborn; wrap your arms around my neck. I'm not taking no for an answer."

Rubbing my eyes with shaky palms, I submitted to my weakness yet again. Drew scooped me up in his arms and my muscles tensed at his touch. I reluctantly held onto his neck as he extended his legs, pulling me close and starting down the stairs.

"It's not too far..." He assured me with focused formality. I didn't say a word, partly because it hurt too much, but mostly out of embarrassment.

All I could do was close my eyes and rest my head on his stupid chest to keep myself from getting sick all over it. The second I smelt his cologne, though, I knew I was too close. My stomach rolled with nausea and I just as quickly picked my head up off him, draping it over to the side. It made me the sickest I'd ever felt being so close to someone that wasn't Lysander; I hated every single second of it.

He carried me through to the infirmary and placed me gently on one of the beds as a nurse rose from her desk and made her way towards us. "What happened?"

Drew just looked over at me with a shrug, "Um..."

"I'm fine...really. I just tripped...down the stairs." Breathing and talking were still incredibly difficult, and the nurse rushed over to me as Drew took a seat on the bed across from mine.

"Oh goodness, you seem to be having trouble breathing...I'll have to feel your chest for a moment." The nurse interjected, but I shook my head.

"I broke two ribs recently and they haven't healed yet. I just need to lie down for a bit." I said through my discomfort.

"Oh, oh yes, I remember reading your file..." she stammered with wide eyes, "I'm going to have to check for further damage, then."

Lying back with a sigh I just shut my eyes. I heard her close the curtain around us, felt her lift up my clothes and winced at her cold touch. She pressed down on each of my ribs and my body reacted appropriately; thrashing and tensing up all over. I tried to focus on being strong even though I wanted to scream. Still, the pain was nothing out of the ordinary.

"The two ribs you broke don't feel great, but there doesn't appear to be any new injuries, according to the information in your chart. I'm going to get your medication from the office...I'll be right back."

The nurse helped me pull my shirt back down, opened up the curtain, and scurried out into the hallway. I watched her close the door and then rested my head deep into the plastic-wrapped pillow with a sigh, glancing over at Drew with narrowed eyes. _Why is he still here?_

He smiled at me, dimples forming in his flushed cheeks. His eyes floated around the room from under the rumbled mop of chestnut hair on his head, and before things got awkward I mustered enough strength to form words.

"Th-thank you for helping me. You really didn't have to..."

"I wasn't just going to leave you there. You fell hard...d-did someone push you?"

I knotted my fingers together with a shrug. I really,_ really_ didn't need any more of his pity...and deep down, I knew Heather would somehow make me pay for snitching on her. "I'm just really clumsy...it's a curse."

_A curse...that's something Lysander would say._ I smiled to myself with the thought of him.

Drew grinned as well, amused by my answer. "Clumsy_ and_ stubborn...yeah, I'd say you're cursed. I must admit though, I'm proud of you for letting me help you without putting up much of a fight. There's hope for you yet."

I just raised my eyebrows as a rare giggle threatened to escape my lips. "I didn't really have a choice, but thanks, nonetheless. It's a shame I can't say the same about you and your persistence. It seems you're still as pushy as ever."

Drew laughed to himself in that silent, shoulder-shaking kind of way, scratching at his neck in consideration. "I prefer the term 'determination', thank you very much. It's a virtue, you know."

"As is resilience." I countered with a crooked smile, followed by more wincing and heaving breathing when I remembered the pain I was in.

The nurse came back through and handed me two white pills and a cup of water. "This should ease the pain, but I want you to stay here until you can breathe comfortably, okay?"

_If it keeps me out of Literature with Heather, I'll drink to that._

I popped both pills in my mouth and chased them down with a gulp that hurt to swallow. The nurse didn't seem to mind Drew's presence as she sat back down at her desk and picked up a pen. _That makes one of us..._

"You don't have to stay here, you know. I'm sure you have somewhere to be." I told Drew after the gut-wrenching pain fizzled into something even more tolerable.

He shrugged, fumbling with the collar of his blazer before looking up from behind the hair in his eyes. "Not really. I mean, I was just going to help my dad with some paperwork to get out of Physics. Nothing too crazy."

"Probably crazier than just sitting here...I'm fine, really." I insisted.

He crossed his arms with a skeptical smirk. "Mhm, sure."

"I am! You'd believe me if you knew the street value of the two painkillers I just took..."

He scrunched his face up at me in laughter. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but the street value of narcotics doesn't seem like your forte, Luna."

For the first time since I'd been here I heard the sound my own laughter. "How could you tell?"

Talking began to feel more natural as the pain subsided, and Drew and I just kind of made pointless chatter to pass the time. As much as I hated to admit it, talking to him was effortless. He was sincere, and I felt guilty for being so horrible to him before. He was the nicest person I'd met here, and I had to give him credit for that.

"You know, I never used to be so stubborn." I blurted randomly after we finished complaining about the school dress code.

Drew looked up, taken aback by my sudden confession.

"I mean, maybe I was about some things, I don't know. I never used to be so neurotic about it, though. I leaned on others for a lot of things and never really did anything for myself. It's not that I don't appreciate the help, because I do. It's just...for the first time in my life I'm trying to be strong."

Drew listened, nodding his head in understanding as he shifted in his seat. "It takes a lot of guts to admit defeat. Sometimes being strong means knowing when to ask for help."

His words caught me off guard. They sounded right and made sense in my head, but for some reason I still couldn't shake the notion that being strong meant taking care of yourself...still, it struck a chord somewhere deep down.

A part of me wanted to look inside his mind to see if he was as genuine as he made himself out to be, but anytime I tried I felt myself shrinking away. The last thoughts I listened to were Lysander's and something about it seemed almost wrong...like I'd be getting too close. The only thoughts I wanted to hear were Lysander's, and I was going to stay firmly tuned out until then.

Drew and I stayed on our respective sides of the infirmary until I was sure that my Literature class was over. I insisted to the nurse that I'd be okay, and we went our separate ways for the rest of the day. After classes finally ended I rushed across campus to my room, eager to get to the only thing that made everything worth it..._Lysander._

The pain medicine helped tremendously, but as I sat down at the computer I sensed the shadow of an ache that I knew I'd be feeling tenfold in the morning. Nothing mattered when this time of day rolled around, though. The pain melted away, the tears dried up, and I always looked forward to feeling my heart start beating again.

I'd received emails from Brooke, who checked in on a daily basis, and my father. So far, he hadn't mentioned anything about my emailing Lysander...he either didn't know or didn't care; either was fine with me. He didn't acknowledge anything; he wrote me as if nothing had happened between us...as if nothing was wrong. I told him what he wanted to hear to keep things diplomatic, but that was it.

Lysander usually got out of class before I did, so I wasn't surprised that there was already an email from him waiting for me at the very top of the list.

**From: Lysander Larkin  
To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Thurs, Feb 11, 2013 3:34 pm  
Subject: My favorite part of the day**

_Lunabelle, _

_How was your day, my love? _

_Truthfully, it's impossible for me to have anything better than a terrible day without you. School was horrible. _

_I can't stand sitting in Mrs. Buckner's class...in the same exact spot that I first got up the courage to talk to you...where we used to drive each other crazy before we knew what we know now. You should be beside me, where you belong._

_I've worried about you today. Did you manage to avoid Heather? I hope you're still taking good care of yourself, beautiful girl. You need to eat and get plenty of rest! I know it's hard. It's so hard. I can hardly stomach anything. Not even Poptarts! :( _

_It makes me feel better that at least I have this to look forward to each day after school. Every word I type to you makes me breathe easier, knowing that you'll read them and write some to me. Words just can't describe how much I miss you. You're all around me, though...__the little shell that I wear around my neck is a constant reminder of how devoted I am to someday returning it to you._

_Just look down at your finger when you miss me most. Only we know :) _

_I love you with all of my heart. _

_-Lysander_

I didn't want to worry Lysander...I never wanted that, but we were always honest with each other; if something were to happen to him I'd want him to tell me. As much as it pained me to, I knew I needed to tell him all about my little incident. We couldn't just read each other's minds anymore and it was admittedly a little hard to get used to.

**From: Luna Broderick  
To: Lysander Larkin  
Sent: Mon, Feb 11, 2013 3:51 pm  
Subject: Re:**

_Lysander! _

_I've missed you so terribly today. I think you're right: it's impossible for us to be happy without each other. :( You have no idea how much I need you right now. I hate it here and I can't wait another second to be back where I belong. I always want to be beside you._

_My day, you ask? It was...interesting. _

_Heather is charming as ever. I find myself wondering just what makes her tick, but I refuse to read her. I don't read anyone here; it'd be too much._

_Now before I continue my story, just know that I'm perfectly fine, just a bit banged up. Don't worry about me, okay?_

_In short, I took quite a tumble down the stairs today. I don't think I'm all that clumsy, so I'm guessing Heather's hands shoving me backwards may have had something to do with it. _

_I'd probably still be at the bottom of the corridor if I hadn't been scooped up by an unexpected passerby. Remember that persistent airhead from my first day here? Yep, Drew Nolan, the headmaster's son. And it turns out he isn't actually all that bad. At first I wanted to just curl up and die when I saw him, but he wouldn't take no for an answer and brought me to infirmary. He was adamant on staying with me until he was sure I was going to live and was quite kind to me through it all. Certainly nicer than everyone else in this place...it's a shame he attends the school across the street otherwise we'd be in the same class and I'd have at least one person on my side here. :P _

_The nurse didn't find anything wrong that wasn't already wrong, so see? Nothing to worry about! Just as long as I'm completely healed by June...I can't have anything getting in the way of our reunion. :)_

_Oh Lysander, I miss you so much that it hurts, but you're right...each time I look down at my ring and read the words I can feel you here with me. I relive the moment you gave it to me, or close my eyes and drift away to our world, where everything is warm and beautiful and we're always together. _

_Give Leigh and Apollo my best! _

_I love you. I love you so, so much. 3_

_-Lunabelle_

And now we wait...

It was routine...the closest to Lysander that I could get. Read, write, wait and repeat.

He was always quick; I could imagine him sitting at his desk, clacking away at the speed of light like he could. He could write thoughts just as fast as he could think them, but the words were still no substitute for his voice in my head.

While I waited for him to reply I sent a quick message to Brooke and my father. It was a few more minutes before another message from Lysander appeared in my inbox, and I clicked on it a thousand times in my excitement.

**From: Lysander Larkin  
To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Mon Feb 11, 2013 4:03 pm  
Subject: Re:**

_I apologize for my delayed response. I had to re-read what you wrote a few times and calm myself from coming down there and doing something impulsive. You told an adult of higher authority what she did to you, right? Has she been expelled yet? _

_It makes me sick to think about what could've happened to you...people fall down the stairs and break their necks every day! I really, really don't feel comfortable with you being in the same school as her._

_I'm so relieved to hear that you're not seriously injured, but my God, Luna...that will set you back in your healing...it's not okay what Heather is doing to you. I'll call the school anonymously if that's what it'll take...anything to keep you safe. I'm so sorry I'm not there to protect you. _

_Forgive me for being so nosy, but who is Drew Nolan? You never mentioned meeting this person before just now. He's our age, you say? And the headmaster's son...what is he doing about the Heather situation with his connection to authority, then? _

_If you could extend my heartfelt gratitude to him, though, for doing what I could not today when you needed someone most...that is, if you ever happen to see him again. Which you probably won't, right? Because surely he isn't at the girl's school very often, if at all, right? _

_...You read his thoughts, right? I hope for his sake that they were respectful towards you. _

_I love you so much Luna, and I'm so worried about you...about everything. I know there isn't much I can do at this point; I've thought of everything...every way we could be together...every way I could protect you from afar... I'll be here for you no matter what, though, and nothing is going to get in the way of that._

_I love you so much _

_-Lysander_

I wiped my face through my hands to stifle tears...I felt so sick for putting Lysander is such panic. I truly thought I had told Lysander about Drew the first day I got here, but thinking back to it, I was so overwhelmed with missing Lysander that as soon as Drew left me in my room on that first day, he didn't cross my mind at all. It was hard to get used to not being able to read each other's minds. A part of me still assumed that Lysander already knew everything

Lysander would be disappointed in me, but I just knew that if I said anything at all to Drew or anyone else about Heather, it would just come back to bite me. Things like that had a tendency of backfiring on me. I knew deep down that I could handle Heather, anyway; every day I was learning her tactics and how to avoid them. I'd eventually bore her into leaving me alone, hopefully.

Lysander had nothing to worry about, and I'd convey that to him in the next message. I was going to be strong...his panic over my safety reassured me of that. I didn't want him to worry about me so much anymore, and I was going to convince him that I'd be okay here...even if I knew I'd never really be.

* * *

**A/N: LIFE, Y U NO LET ME WRITE?! D: **

**I wish I could live in a cabin in the middle of the woods for like a week and do NOTHING but write...that would be amazingggg. I miss you guys SO much, and I hope you're enjoying Luna's stint at boarding school. **

**I know you all must miss Lysander just as much as I do, but rest assured, you might be seeing him sooner than you think! **

**Thank you all so much for your amazing love and support! I'll be back with another update soon! **

**xoxo**


	32. Chapter Thirty One

**Chapter Thirty One: A Stitch in Time**

It didn't take long for me to realize that ignoring Heather Lobell was the_ worst_ thing I could do. It only made her try harder. She was desperate for a reaction and the sooner she got one, the better.

"Don't _ignore_ me, Broderick!"

...In this case however, I had no choice but to do _exactly_ that.

I was thankful for the lack of staircases in the vicinity. The hallway was empty; completely free of both tripping hazards and bystanders. It was nothing short of a_ tragedy_ that I couldn't stay and chat, but I was running late for class and simply had to keep moving.

_How nice, you brought some friends with you! To what do I owe such pleasure?_

I listened to multiple pairs of shoes quicken and my skin crawled when a heavy hand snapped down on my shoulder. Heather tightened her grasp, digging her nails in with one swift maneuver and yanking my body to face her. "You know what? I'm sick of your snobby little attitude!"

I stumbled slightly, picking my eyes off the ground to glare at her from under a mess of sandy bangs that scattered and streaked my vision. "I'm just walking to class..."

She rolled her neck back to her friends as they huddled behind her; judging by their expressions they knew just how lucky they were to be on her good side."_Oh_, you're just walking to class? Well then, let me help you get a jumpstart!"

Heather had an affinity for shoving me into walls; I was fairly certain that she was a sadist and enjoyed watching my face twist in pain whenever my ribcage smacked against a hard surface. The world was lucky that she was also predictable though, and I anticipated her tactic the second I saw her face. Her hands struck my chest and my palms flew back against the wall where I pushed off unharmed.

Heather's eyebrows shot up and she crossed her arms, clicking her tongue in disgust. _How dare I evade pain! _All coiled up and hissing, the only thing she was missing was a rattle and some hemotoxic fangs.

I brushed the hair from my face and repositioned my book bag on my shoulder. She wasn't pleased that I'd avoided getting hurt and so again predictably lunged towards me. This time, I was efficiently able to dodge her. I curled my fingers, raking pressed nails into the surface of my palm with unfurling irritation.

"I have _never_ done _anything _to you, Heather! I'm sorry that you're so miserable, but you know what? I'm miserable too, and hating each other is going to make any of it go away...just stop being awful and leave me alone!"

I could've sworn I saw something falter in her. Even when she finally managed to flash me that infamous sneer she scoffed in a way that sounded almost conflicted. Taking a gulp of the tense air around us, she wound up her tongue and I expected her to breathe words like a dragon breathes fire.

I'd never known her to back down and was shocked, to say the least, when she abruptly snapped shut.

At first I thought she had reconsidered my plea, but that would've been too easy. Her eyes floated from mine and widened on something from behind me.

To my deep satisfaction, the sound of approaching footsteps clued me in that she'd been caught red-handed. She immediately pulled her glare into an earnest smile, fanning her eyelashes in an attempt to transform her demeanor.

"Oh, h-hey Drew! We were just playing around...I guess we'd better get to class now, right girls?" She turned to her friends, glaring at them until they nodded in harmony.

I whipped my head backwards and my lips pinched a half-smile; that first sight of him was liberating. He stood upright behind me but his posture wavered each time he blinked. Rubbing his palms together nervously, his dark eyes flicked across the halls as if looking for the words to say.

"I...I saw w-what you were...d-doing" He swallowed a hard lump in his throat as a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, practically sizzling on the surface of his burning cheeks. His hands trembled anxiously when he reached to rake at the back of his neck.

My stomach dropped. Something wasn't right...this wasn't the same Drew that sat with me in the infirmary last week. _What's the matter with him?_

"We weren't doing anything, _right_ Luna?" Heather eyed me through clenched teeth.

He swung his gaze to me before sheepishly peering at Heather from behind a veil of messy mocha-colored bangs. I searched his face, but it revealed no explanation to his curious behavior.

"Heather," He pressed his eyes shut as he spat her name "l-leave the new st-student alone..."

"Or what? You'll t-t-t-tell your daddy on me? Go ahead, see if I care." Heather barked, mimicking Drew's sudden stammer and draining his eyes of color as she spun around, storming off in the opposite direction and leaving her friends to scamper behind nervously.

I blew out a sigh of relief, turning to thank Drew with an appreciative smile that melted when I saw him. He rubbed at his arm and then dragged tense fingers through his hair before clearing his throat.

"I uh, I gotta go." He spewed, turning on one foot and hurrying down the corridor.

I was paralyzed with confusion. Out of the two times I'd ever encountered Drew I'd seen him as an outspoken, quick-witted ball of persistence...I didn't know him all that well, but it was obvious that something was wrong. His distressing facial expressions and painfully choppy dialogue said it all.

The least I could do was follow him to make sure he was okay, considering I was practically in his debt after the times he'd come to my rescue. He didn't get very far, and I quickly found him grumbling at the back of an empty classroom, angrily fussing with the side of his pants.

"Drew, are you alright?" I called out to him, slowly shuffling through the doorway.

He snapped his eyes up at me for just a moment, keeping his head down and letting out a ragged sigh. "I got my pants caught on something out there and ripped them to shit..."

All at once, the shaking, sputtering mess from before had completely dissolved into a more familiar version of himself. I didn't pay much mind to the phenomenon though, and narrowed my eyes from a distance. "Where did you rip them?"

He twisted his torso and stretched out the fabric on the outer-side of his thigh revealing a gaping tear just _begging_ to be _sewn_. My fingers tingled, growing eager with the need for a job to do, and I found myself inching closer to get a better look. I couldn't remember the last time I'd had the chance to fix torn fabric and bent down at his side instinctively, my eyes assessing the situation.

Drew stumbled backwards a bit, redness spreading across his face like wildfire as he gawked down at me. "L-Luna...?"

_Oh- perhaps I should've warned that I simply cannot ignore a fashion catastrophe..._

"It's a straight tear...just a line of popped seams. An easy fix, really...it'll only take a moment if you'd like me to mend it!" My hand plunged into the pocket of my blazer where I kept my trusty pocket-sewing-kit.

"O-oh..._oh._ Okay, yeah...um, d-do you want me to sit down or something?" He asked, rubbing fingers over his chin.

I plucked the proper needle for the job, using my fingertips to pull a line of thread from the spool. "Nope, this is perfect. Just stand still..."

Gathering the torn fabric of his khakis and pulling it straight, I promptly began to send the needle through, taking great care not to stab anything but his pants. I felt him tense up and glanced to him with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I won't poke you."

"Uh, yeah. Th-thanks...for doing this."

"Of course! I do apologize...I only have black thread on me, but I'll try my best to make it barely visible at all."

"Nu-no, you're fine. I mean, that's fine." He gulped, nodding as I continued to work the needle back and forth in a tight pattern until the tear was completely sewn shut.

Snapping the thread in between my finger nails and tying it tight, I stood up, brushed my knees off, and placed my sewing kit back in my pocket. "It's not perfect, but it'll hold until you can get them tailored."

He looked down with a chuckle of disbelief. "Wow, yeah this is great. Thanks Luna."

"Oh, sure thing!" I smiled graciously.

Drew's mouth twitched up on one side. "So uh, do I even want to know why you carry needles on your person at all times?"

"Well, in case of emergencies like these, of course! It never hurts to be prepared!"

He leaned against a desk behind him, crossing his arms and legs with a smirk. "No truer words were ever said. You definitely saved me from a world of humiliation just now. I don't think I've ever seen someone's hands move so fast before...you're like, the master of knitting."

"You mean sewing..." I giggled, pulling myself to sit on top of one of the desks facing him. "Knitting is creating the fabric; sewing is just pulling two pieces of it together. I'm no master, but I do enjoy it."

I bit my lip wistfully as a glimpse of the girl I used to be passed through my mind. I hadn't realized how much I missed the quiet nights in my room, peddling away at my sewing machine for hours while texting Lysander.

_Lysander...oh, I miss you more than anything right now. I wish you were here._

"Well, I'm definitely impressed. I'm assuming it's kind of your thing, then?"

I glanced back up to Drew with a nod, swallowing any tears that had threatened to rise to the surface before clearing my throat. "Y-yeah, I like making things. It's weird. I was a sheltered child, to say the least."

"I'm sure your art teachers must've loved you!" He tossed the hair out of his eyes with a charismatic smirk.

"That's the thing; I was homeschooled up until this year, so while other kids were making friends...I was making random stuff."

Drew pushed himself up to sit on his desk as well and rested his hands on his knees, seeming suddenly overtaken with interest. "Wait...so, let me get this straight; you were homeschooled your entire life...stuck in public school your senior year, and then pulled out not even halfway through for private school? That's unheard of! You got the total school experience from every possible viewpoint!"

I just shrugged, "Yeah, I guess you could look at it that way..."

He rested his chin in his hand, nodding considerately. Before allowing him to pry any more I let my tongue twist a change of subject. "Hey, I almost forgot to thank you for what you did for me back there. You know, with Heather."

He slowly sat up straight, his torso stiff with the mention of her name. "Oh, uh...yeah. Don't mention it...no big deal, just doing my job."

"It _is_ a big deal, though. I saw how uncomfortable she made you and I appreciate you putting yourself in that situation. You really didn't have to."

He waved a hand at me and shook his head in protest of my words, "She doesn't make me uncomfortable! She just...I just..."

"Hey, I get it. You don't have to explain it to me, believe me. She's brutal. Shameless and brutal." I cringed with the thought of her, and Drew's face twisted up into a look of confusion. He slowly narrowed his eyes at me, craning his neck as he came to some kind of realization.

"Luna...did she_ push_ you down those stairs last week?"

I chomped down on my lip out of instinct, clamming up as his eyes burned on me. "Um...well, I did seem to trip just as her arms swung forcefully in the direction of my torso from the top of the staircase...but the details are fuzzy."

"Has she been terrorizing you like this every day?" His tone was intense and his eyes flicked around in mine with familiar sympathy that bothered me to see.

I skewed my mouth to the side and shrugged. "She just doesn't forget to remind me each day how much she disapproves of my existence."

"Luna..." He sighed, tisking at me. "You should've told me the other day; I'd have taken care of it for you."

"I appreciate your concern...I just don't trust my luck; things like that tend to backfire on me. I'm just going to deal with her until she gets tired of me." I ended my reply with a stoic smile to ease his uncertainties, completely forgetting who I was talking to. _Oh yes, persistent Mr. Nolan..._

"She needs to get in trouble for what she's doing to you. She can't be allowed to get away with treating you like this; especially with your rib thing..."

I sighed, shifting uncomfortably on the desk and glancing to him with pleading eyes. "Please, please don't tell anyone. If I were to get her in trouble...well, I can't imagine what she'd do to me if she actually had a reason to hate me."

Drew gritted his teeth and fluttered his eyelids with frustration, respiring in defeat. "Can we make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?"

"Well, hopefully she got the point today, but if she didn't, and doesn't get 'tired of you' by March I'm taking your case to my dad." His stare was unrelenting, pressing me to agree. Drew was just trying to help, and with the way things were going I firmly hoped that Heather would back off by then.

He had himself a deal.

"Oh my god..." I gasped upon the sudden realization, "I never went to class..."

Drew looked over his shoulder at the clock on the wall behind him and then back to me with an offhand nod. "So what? I'll write you up an excuse and fiddle around with the attendance sheets down at the office...you'll be fine."

"You can do that?" I looked to him for hope; the last thing I needed was any disciplinary reports to get back to my father.

"You were helping me pick up broken glass in the courtyard. Lots of little pieces...safety hazard...super important." He rambled, raising his eyebrows enthusiastically as he tried to sound convincing.

"But there isn't any broken glass out in the courtyard!"

"Because we picked it all up!" He winked at me, flashing me a bright toothy smile that exhumed confidence.

Drew assured me the rest of my class wasn't worth catching, and so we stayed in the empty classroom and talked, watching the clock so that we could slip out before the hallways filled again. With five minutes remaining I grabbed my bag from the desk and hopped down, turning to make my way to the door.

"Luna, hold up!" Drew called from behind me, and I spun around to listen as he sauntered through the row of desks.

"Hmm?"

"Hey..." He mumbled, his mouth falling into a lopsided smirk, "I just...um."

He reached out to touch my shoulder and I stiffened at his contact, turning my head to the side and gawking at the friendly gesture.

"You just um?"

He laughed, shaking his head to himself. "I just wanted to let you know that I consider you a friend, and I'm here if you ever need someone to talk to."

He removed his hand and used it to scratch the back of his neck as I smiled appreciatively. "Thanks Drew, that means a lot. I hope you know the same goes for you. You're honestly the nicest person I've met here, and I appreciate everything you've done for me so far."

"Dang, I knew the girls here were annoying, but bad enough that_ I'm_ the nicest person you can find? That's pretty pathetic." He teased, raking idle fingers through his hair.

I giggled with him and he cracked his knuckles before being reminded of something, jolting with the thought of it. He set his messenger bag down on one of the desks and began rummaging through it. Pulling out a notebook and pen he jotted something down on a piece of paper and ripped it out to hand to me. "My email address...message me anytime you want."

"Oh, okay...thanks." I looked down at the piece of paper in my hands and shrugged.

Drew brushed the hair out of his eyes and cleared his throat again. "But uh, yeah...I usually come by here a few times a week, so anytime you see me floating around don't hesitate to throw needles at me or whatever...that way I'll know it's just you. Better yet, I seem to always stumble upon you when you're in some kind of danger, don't I? All you have to do is put yourself in an awkward situation and chances are I'll find you sooner or later."

It was something I couldn't deny, and we laughed about it until parting ways in the hallway. I smiled to myself as I walked in the direction of my next class, feeling good about my new friendship with Drew. He really was a genuinely nice person; someone who'd make this place just a little less terrible by cracking a lame joke or lending an ear every once in a while. He was no replacement for Brooke, Castiel, Rosalya and the rest of my friends back home...and as far as replacing Lysander went, there was simply no contest; not a thought in my mind that even suggested it.

I had to admit...it was a bit intimidating choosing not to read the person I considered my new friend at all. Drew was only the second person I'd ever befriended without ever hearing their thoughts, the first being Lysander, back before I knew what he was.

There was still this lingering urge to read Drew, like an itch you can't scratch, but anytime I'd get close to caving in on that urge I'd feel myself recoil from him, as if I was getting too close. The only thoughts I wanted in my head were the person's who could read mine right back.

Those thoughts were far away, but his voice stuck in my head; just as crisp and clear as if he was whispering in my ear himself. I could hear Lysander speak to me every time I read his emails, and when my favorite part of the day rolled around I grabbed onto the mouse, gluing my eyes to the monitor the same way I always did after a long time without him. I was ready to flood my mind with nothing but Lysander once more.

**From: Lysander Larkin  
To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Mon, Feb 18, 2013 3:24 pm  
Subject: I miss you**

_Would you be surprised if I told you that I missed you? No? Good. :) I hope you realize that I won't stop missing you until you're back in my arms. It's only getting closer, my love! Today is just one step closer to the rest of our lives together. That's what keeps me going. _

_I can't stop kicking up dust in my heart about not being with you for our first Valentine's Day together. I know we already talked about all of this last Thursday, but I want to reassure you that I'm going to make up for that. Every day will be Valentine's day for you, Luna. I promise. _

_Today however, was just another awful day without you for me. Every day is._

_Castiel, Nathaniel and I discussed the future of the band at lunch. They aren't done playing music yet, and neither am I. In fact, music has been quite therapeutic to me in recent days. After establishing that Despite Chaos isn't going anywhere they mentioned possibly playing a show in about a month...a__nd so I have about a month to prepare myself, because I agreed without hesitation. I can't let them down; I know how much the band means to them. It means a great deal to me, too. Canceling our performance right before our set last time wasn't good for our reputation, and so this show would be a chance for us to redeem ourselves. _

_Castiel thinks it'll be good for me to get out and do something I enjoy. I do have my reservations, though..._

_The idea of performing without you there is extremely upsetting, and I'm intimidated with the burning memories of the last show I intended to play. It's not at the same venue, but I fear I may still relive certain things that I don't wish to remember at all. I am also terrified of looking for you in the crowd and realizing that you're not there. I just don't know how I'll react._

_I'm being awfully dramatic, though. Really I am. Don't you worry your beautiful mind for a single second about me. Just as long as you're okay, so am I. _

_Goodness Luna, you've reduced me to a rambling mess! I never was very fond of senseless chatter before, you know. I hope you don't mind my wordy ways. I try to get all of my thoughts out to you so it's as if you're still listening to them yourself. You could write a summary the word-length of a novel just describing your day and I'd still want more._

_I find it interesting to compare my present-self to the person I was before I met you. You make me better every day, senseless chatter and all. _

_In any case, I hope you had a good day, my love. I can't wait to hear from you. _

_I love you Luna._

_-Lysander_

**From: Luna Broderick  
To: Lysander Larkin  
Sent: Mon, Feb 18, 2013 3:38 pm  
Subject: Re:**

_Ah, but I love my perfectly charming chatterbox! And I adore your wordy ways. :)_

_I really do understand and appreciate the elaboration, though. We both know I'm twice the rambling mess that you are! I always feel the need to go on and on...I want you to feel like you're here with me, just like I know you strive to make me feel as close to you as I can. _

_This is all we have, and we've got to do the best we can with what we've got. _

_I can't tell you how proud of you I am for deciding to play the show. Regardless of your reassurance though, I can't help but to worry. I don't want you to do this unless you're 100% certain that you're ready. Nathaniel and Castiel love you so much, and they will more than understand if you don't think you ought to perform so soon, I guarantee it. I'm glad you have a month to prepare. As of today, I'd don't think either of us could face that atmosphere. It's not even been a month yet...almost, but not yet._

_Oh no. :( It's almost been an entire month since I've seen you! I hate that. I hate that so much. _

_I know, I know...it only means we're closer to being together again. I've got to remember that. _

_And now I'm smiling, because I'm picturing you saying that to me right now. You're probably leaning back in your chair too, aren't you? (which you know worries me sick...you're going to fall back and hurt yourself!) _

_...And now you're shaking your head at me and fixing your chair. (all four legs on the floor, mister! ...thank you!)_

_You're smiling...or at least I hope you're smiling. Maybe even laughing a little? What I wouldn't do to be there and give my imagination a break... _

_I miss you, you know. And as happy as I am for you and the band for landing another performance opportunity, I really am quite sad that I won't be there. Promise that you'll sing for me as soon as you can? I love your voice. _

_Now who's the chatterbox? That would be me :)_

_Ah, I have some maybe-good-news?_

_Today was just like any day, and upon spotting me in the halls the ever-consistent Ms. Heather didn't hesitate to deliver her daily dose of verbal abuse. In true Déjà vu fashion, none other than Drew Nolan suddenly came upon the situation. He honestly wasn't very intimidating...just between you and me; I think he's scared of Heather, too! He defended me though, and being the Headmaster's son I'm hoping Heather will find my friendship with Drew to be the deal-breaker in our bully/victim relationship. I guess we'll see! _

_I missed a good bit of class being heckled by Heather, and so I let Drew talk me into skipping the rest of the period. (He promised to conjure up an alibi and change my attendance in the computer and/or books if he has to, so I should be safe.) He's nice, and I think it's safe to say I've actually made a friend here! I think you would like him...he's almost like a mix between Nathaniel and Castiel, but with his own quirky twist. _

_Anyway, fingers crossed that Heather backs down, at least a little. Only time will tell! _

_I miss you so much it hurts. I just want to go home. :(_

_How is my sweet little bird today? How is everyone at SAHS? As always, tell Leigh that I miss him and give him my best. _

_I love you so much._

_Luna_

**From: Lysander Larkin  
To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Mon, Feb 18, 2013 3:47 pm  
Subject: Re:**

_Ah, there's my beautiful girl :) You had me in stitches the way you completely nailed guessing what I was doing. All four legs are now on the floor, promise! _

_Drew again, huh? :/_

_Well...I'm glad to hear that he was able to help you again in your time of need. You'll have to be sure to thank him for me next time you see him. If you do see him again. _

_Now forgive me for asking, but does he just wander around St. Catherine's on a regular basis, looking for girls in distress? Because that's what it sounds like to me. Either that, or he's just very eager to help you in particular. Hmm. As much as I appreciate his protecting you, I do find myself hoping that he knows his boundaries._

_But you've surely read his thoughts and he's not a threat or anything, right? Does he have a girlfriend? Oh, it didn't even occur to me that he could be gay. Is he gay? For as much time as he seems to be spending at the girls' school I find myself hoping that he is. _

_At any rate, I'm very happy to hear that Drew may have put an end to Heather's cruelty. I was very close to just driving down there and taking care of the problem my way...but then I'd have to kidnap you in the process, and that wouldn't go over too well with your father. It's still quite tempting, though. :( _

_Oh Luna, once I get you back I am never going to let you go. I promise. I also promise you a private concert to make up for the one you'll miss. I'll sing to you all night long once I can hold you in my arms._

_Apollo is just as chipper as ever! In fact, he's perched on my shoulder right now! He likes being up high where he can see everything. He misses you though, and you probably think I'm just saying that, but it's true. He sings this sad little song sometimes that just says it all._

_Everyone else is doing fine. Brooke tells me that she talks to you often, so you probably don't need an update on her or Castiel. They've been good to me, and they talk about you all the time. We all miss you so much. _

_Everyone is starting to stress about college, and so that's keeping them busy. I'm not going to worry about any of that until you and I can sit down together and plan out our future. I want to base my goals and dreams off of yours, and for now I only have one dream; you. _

_Leigh asks about you every day. He's practically made you an entire new wardrobe already to try on and sift through when you get back. When I got home today he was looking blue and told me that the reason he was upset was because he wouldn't get to make 'the perfect prom dress' for you. He told me to tell you, and I quote, "That just means that I'm going to go extra crazy with your wedding dress!" _

_I have to admit that made me quite happy to think about. :) I can't even imagine how beautiful you'd be wearing a wedding dress, and I hope to see you in one someday. It would be a dream come true to be standing at the end of a long aisle when I do. _

_I love you Lunabelle. :) _

* * *

**Hey guys! Hanging in there? I'm setting the stage for some big things, but in the meantime I do hope that you're all enjoying the shenanigans of boarding school life.**

**It looks like I've hit a steady pattern of updating every 8-10 days, and I kind of hate it. I can't promise I'll be quicker, but I will tell you that I'm trying my best to fit in more time to write. I love updating for you guys, and so my goal is to get back to the weekly-thing I had going on for a while there. Ah, those were the days.**

**Thank you all so much for your support! There are many of you who write stories on here that I love, and I apologize if I haven't been keeping up with them lately. I'm going to try to get caught up this week with everything and can't wait to read what all of you have been working on! It's the pleasure of my life to write alongside such talented authors in this fantastic fandom.**

**Finally, I'm sure you all understand as writers the need for constructive criticism. My goal is and always has been to improve my writing with each and every chapter I publish, and so I just wanted to throw this out there: if there is anything about my writing and Only We Know that stands out to you in terms of needing work, things you like/dislike, areas to improve, etc. lay it on me! I welcome constructive criticism like I welcome cupcakes. It's the best tool I can use to improve my writing!**

**I love you guys! Hopefully I'll be coming at you soon with another update!**

**xoxo**

**Exactlyamanda**


	33. Chapter Thirty Two

**Chapter Thirty Two: The Higher You'll Fly**

"_**Come to me in my dreams and then**_

_**By day I shall be well again**_

_**For then the night will more than pay**_

_**The hopeless longing of the day"**_

_**-Matthew Arnold, Longing**_

* * *

_At first everything was incoherent; just dribbles of pitch and globs of tone._

_It sounded like a conversation from the first floor sounds to someone on the second floor; flat-lined vocalizations without dialogue, the dividing floorboards a filter straining out the sharp chisel that cuts voices into words._

_When everything finally crackled into clarity I was alert; I recognized them. I listened close until I felt my eyelids flicker open to the dream. Vibrant color flooded my mind and the pictures were clear. _

_I felt out-of-body, like a ghost floating above them. I didn't question it. I just watched. _

_Castiel was the first to appear, that brown jacket so familiar against his otherwise black apparel. He sat crossed legged on a very recognizable bed and then fell back, cushioned by a down comforter that sparked a memory._

_I watched him incline his head upside-down off the side of the bed with a sneer. His choppy charcoal hair flopped around his ears and over his forehead and he looked to his right, barking through the silence. _

"_You didn't hear a single word of that, did you?"_

_My vision panned down to the blue beanbag chair on the floor and if I were a dog I'd have wagged my tail at the sight of those boots. Long legs in tight slacks sat crossed, a notebook propped up on them capturing ink from the pen that scurried across its paper. Lysander's shoulders hunched and he jumped out of a daze. "Hm, what?"_

_Castiel rolled onto his stomach with laughter, supporting his head with the palms of bended arms. "I rest my case."_

"_I'm afraid I've let this pen carry me away again, Castiel. I do apologize for my perpetual detachment..." The faraway look diminished from under his wind-swept silver hair._

"_I'll let it slide. I was just bragging about how good I got Brooke the other night. We'd been having this prank war thing, but I pretty much ended it."_

_Lysander shook his head. "Oh dear, what have you done to the poor girl now?"_

_I followed even though I had no idea what was going on as Castiel snickered maliciously. "She's always checking the shower for murders anytime she goes into the bathroom, so I put a life-sized cardboard cutout of Batman in there..."_

"_And did she appreciate discovering Gotham's finest hero rather than a murderer?"_

"_Anyone else would, but not Brooke! She sounded like a howler monkey being mauled by zombies, all huddled in the corner, crying and pointing...as if I could save her from fucking Batman! I held a straight face long enough to ask if he was done ridding the shower of crime...and then she threw a hairbrush at my face." _

_I felt Lysander's laughter. "Ah, I shouldn't be laughing. You're a disturbed individual."_

"_All's fair in love and war! Don't get me wrong, I'm still completely infatuated with the little fruitcake, but she totally deserved it." Castiel sat up, crossing his arms matter-of-factly._

"_What could she have possibly done to deserve that?" _

"_Dude, if you knew how Brooke was at home you'd be giving me a standing ovation. She's a psychopath! She throws tantrums, complains nonstop, takes hours to get ready to leave the house, and cries every time that fucking commercial with the homeless puppies comes on!" _

"_That commercial is quite miserable, Castiel..." _

"_I mean yeah, homeless puppies suck, but the only thing worth crying over is having to listen to Sarah McLaughlan for more than thirty seconds. And she doesn't just cry, she scares the dogs, too, screaming 'Mommy won't let anyone hurt you!'...it's sick, man. Traumatizing her is just too easy, and in return Brooke has made it her mission to royally piss me off every day. Little girl is crazy...but I wouldn't have it any other way."_

"_Girls just get emotional sometimes, Castiel."_

"_Sometimes? Yeah, that's cute. Just you wait, bud. You don't even know the half of it until you're living with them. And don't even get me started on PMS. Did you ever see The Exorcist?"_

_Lysander's eyebrows arched up around his eyes as he laughed. "I'm certain it's not that bad!"_

"_Oh it is. You'll understand when Boots' head spins around and she's screaming in tongues because you ate the last ice cream sandwich." I didn't notice the teasing; hearing Castiel call me 'Boots' felt like home._

"_...But I'd never eat the last ice cream sandwich. Luna doesn't like them very much anyway because the chocolate gets stuck to the roof of her mouth and bothers her. Besides, I'd have already bought all her favorite things. My Luna is too sweet for satanic head rotations..."_

_Castiel just blinked, blowing out a hiss of laughter as she shook his head. "You poor, sorry soul. You got it bad, I feel for you man. You'll see what I'm talking about when she moves in with you this summer."_

_Lysander's eyes flicked across the entire room in consideration as a faulty smile played on his lips. "Summer can't come soon enough..."_

_Castiel skewed his mouth to the side as he watched his best friend gaze at a picture on a nightstand. "It'll be here before you know it."_

_Lysander brushed a piece of hair from his eyes with his pen as he scanned his notebook, the other boy craning his neck to read whatever it was he'd written. "Lyrics?"_

"_Mhm." _

_I noticed Castiel's thin lips draw a dismal curve when he finished. "Damn. That's dark."_

_Lysander closed the notebook as he snickered quietly to himself. "I suppose it is a bit melodramatic, isn't it?_

"_What's got you, bro? You know I can't read minds like you can." _

_Mismatched eyes widened in horror. "I- I beg your pardon?" _

_A pair of gray ones narrowed back with a smile, shadowy wisps of hair falling over them with his laughter. "You always seem to know what's bothering me...you're the best friend ever and I know I'm kinda clueless but I want you to talk to me...share your feelings and shit. Remember, it's not gay unless we're naked."_

_Lysander's face bunched up in earnest. He held his lip in his teeth contemplating unsure words. Castiel tilted his head and nudged him. "Just missing Luna?" _

_I watched him blink several times before pressing his lips together in defeat. He sighed, rubbing his forehead with his palm. "I can't take it anymore, Castiel. I hate this." _

_Castiel's optimism diminished. I could feel his helplessness, because I felt it too. He'd never seen Lysander so broken, and reached out to place a supportive hand on his shoulder. "It's okay, man. It's okay to hate it. It fucking sucks...hell, as much as I complain I can't stand being away from Brooke for two seconds. I don't know how you do it." _

"_I'm not doing it, Castiel. I'm not okay...and I feel so selfish!" Lysander snapped his neck up and gulped air, "She's there by herself; she's all alone. I'm pathetic. I've still got you and Leigh and all of my friends...she has no one."_

"_She hasn't made any friends?" _

_Lysander's face flushed of the little color it had to begin with. He clenched his teeth and I could feel the intense pressure in my heart. "Well, not in any of the girls in her class. She has however managed to capture the attention of the headmaster's son. Drew Nolan..." There was hate in the way he said Drew's name _

_Castiel frowned. "D-do you think there's something going on?" _

"_No, no, it's not like that. She loves me...that much I know is true. It's just..." He sighed, chewing his words over in his mind, "she's very naïve when it comes to these things...she tries so hard to see the good in everyone that she overlooks the red flags."_

"_Red flags...is this Drew guy a sketch?" _

"_I don't know...seems as though every time she's needed me and I've not been there, Drew has. She thinks he means well, and I'm thankful that someone is looking out for her, I'm just..."_

"_Jealous?"_

_Lysander balled his hand into a tight fist and brought it to his mouth, biting his knuckle in consideration. "I'm not...I mean, I t-try not to..."_

"_Hey, look who you're talking to! Fuckin' jealousy king, right here! It's only natural. We've been cursed with hot girlfriends to protect from the rest of the scumbag male population."_

_Lysander was silent for a moment, sucking in a deep breath of air. _

"_I feel like Drew is replacing me." He blurted in realization. "He's doing my job in making her happy and protecting her, and I hate it. I hate him so much." _

_He thrust his fingers through his hair with a loud, shaky breath, jumping to his feet and pacing around the room. "Maybe Miles was right. Maybe I am toxic to her. I know it's selfish, but if it's true then I want the chance to change it. I'm scared that Drew is better for her than me..."_

_Castiel was on his feet now and he grabbed Lysander by the shoulders. "Hey, that's bullshit. It's all bullshit. Listen to me..."_

"_I can't lose her, Castiel. I can't."_

"_She's not stupid, man, She knows just how lucky she is to have you and isn't going to let that go. You guys are perfect together. You have this weird connection thing...it creeps me out sometimes! The way you look at each other...it's like you don't even need to speak because you can see the words in each other's eyes."_

_Lysander looked up from under sweeping, sticky-with-sweat bangs._

"_She's crazy about you, and she isn't going anywhere." _

_I watched him think. His unstable fingers hovered in front of his mouth and he nodded his head, backing up to sit on the bed. Castiel sat beside him, watching his face. _

"_S-so...you don't suppose I'll lose her?" _

_Castiel slung his arm around his best friend with a warm, lopsided smile. "No buddy, I don't suppose you will." _

It was the most realistic, most alarming dream I'd ever had. I recalled every single detail as if it were a memory; as if I'd been there with them. Perhaps the strangest part about it was that it matched up. I knew from the previous day's emails that Lysander was indulging in some much-needed boy time. Castiel _had _been with him last night.

I was reading way too into it.

The reason I'd had such a dream had nothing to do with some kind of advanced ESP and everything to do with the fact that I'd simply had it in my head when I fell asleep. Still, I couldn't deny that their conversation was eerily uncanny, and Lysander's qualms about Drew, although not real or true at all, kind of weighed on me a little. I never wanted him to feel that way. Fortunately, his morning email eased my worries.

_'Castiel and I had an enjoyable evening. Between playing video games we even managed to work on a song or two! It was nice to revisit the old days, back when it was just the two of us against the world, but I'll admit the subject of our girls came up on more than one occasion. Castiel wants me to tell you that we also 'spooned until the sun came up' ...but that definitely did not happen. I think that's his way of saying hello and good morning. :)'_

The rest of the email was full of optimistic, albeit longing words, and after sending off an equally loving reply I'd managed to push the unease of the dream aside to tackle yet another glorious day at St. Catherine's Academy.

* * *

A few of us stragglers wandered the halls, but mostly everyone was where they belonged. Now that I didn't feel as vulnerable anymore I didn't have a reason to rush; I'd get there eventually.

It'd been a week and a day since my last full-on conflict with Heather. She'd reverted significantly, whittling her list of evil-doings back to the basics, and I guess I had Drew to thank for that. I could handle the occasional cheap-shot in the hallway no problem. Her dirty looks didn't faze me either although I was lucky that looks couldn't kill. She was definitely holding back, but so far showed admirable resistance. I had to hand it to her.

As liberating as it was, I was still getting used to not lurking around like an outlaw on the run. Even if the bounty over my head had jumped down a few figures I felt like I'd always be wanted, dead or alive.

My eyes panned from my shoes up across the hallway and I jolted my posture a bit, surprised by the sudden appearance of Headmaster Nolan. Drew fell into step beside him, stopping when he noticed his father's straight-ahead smile. I hope I didn't look as nervous as I was. The only time I'd ever seen the Headmaster was my very first day, and I hadn't made a very good impression.

"Miss Broderick, it's nice to see you again!" He gestured in his approach, Drew smiling at the sight of me.

My lips parted, nervousness escaping along with the words. "G-good morning Headmaster...Drew."

"Hey Luna, how're you today?" Drew's silky voice chirped in sincere. His father's neck snapped and he furrowed down at his son and then back to me, scratching the top of his scalp like something had suddenly struck him.

"I'm well, thanks!" I smiled politely, continuing to watch Mr. Nolan out of the corner of my eye.

He chuckled to himself, a smile curling into his mustache, "Now Andrew, you haven't been getting this fine young lady into trouble, have you?"

_What's that supposed to mean? _

Drew's face turned red when he shook it. "Luna and I run into each other from time to time, no trouble in that!"

"_I see_. Well, I'll tell you what...you two continue to behave until graduation and I'll think about letting you take the Ferrari on your first date!"

My eyes widened in unison with Drew's. He wasn't bashful in elbowing his father in the forearm. "Dad!"

"Oh, no no no! We're just friends!" I waved my arms frantically to put an end to _that_ promptly.

"Just friends, got it!" Mr. Nolan winked at us, slinging an arm around his son and squeezing his shoulders, "Just a head's up...Drew here is a little green; he's never had such a pretty _friend_ before, so go easy on him!"

"Oh my god, dad!" Drew groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose in embarrassment while my lips compressed my shock. I held my breath as Mr. Nolan walked away laughing, my entire face on fire with fluster.

"Um, he has rapidly progressing dementia and didn't take his medicine today. I apologize for his outburst." Drew immediately turned to me, running a hand through his hair.

"Ah, that explains it." I said, rocking back and forth on my heels and rubbing my arms. I knew poor Drew was just trying to lessen the discomfort of his father's teasing.

"Yeeep. It's pretty distressing." He stuck his hands in his pockets, shuffling his feet awkwardly.

"Sounds like it...I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't be." He waved a hand at me, "It's pretty mild. His only symptom seems to be doing everything in his power to embarrass his youngest child. It's fun."

"Mm..."

"Yep "

"I guess I should probably get to class." I announced, chewing my lip to keep from laughing at the nature of the conversation.

Drew's eyes widened and he nodded frantically. "Oh, oh right! Yeah, no...you should definitely get to class. Because you know, it's Tuesday...and you have class. Yep. That's a thing. Alrighty. Well it's been real, Luna."

I scrunched my nose with a giggle, nodding a goodbye to him before turning. "Likewise, Drew."

"Catch you later!" His voice cracked as he threw out a jumbled wave, whirling a pirouette and hurrying off in the opposite direction.

I rubbed my palms as I walked, looking down to the precious teal ascot around my neck and straightening it with the thought of Lysander. Drew was my friend, and even the thought of anyone pairing the two of us together made my stomach churn. In fact, I was able to hold back from vomiting only upon getting a glimpse of the time from the clock on the wall.

My feet began shuffling faster and faster until I was jogging steadily down the halls. I kept my pace even up until my left foot crossed over and onto the flopping shoelace on the right.

The hitch in my throat was all too familiar; I was hardly surprised when I tripped and landed on my knees. My palms smacked on the linoleum, catching the rest of me. Thankfully, the only bruises from this would swell on my self-esteem.

I rolled over to my backside to tie my shoes, getting a glimpse of my book bag and its contents lying strewn across the hallway; I was just glad that no one was around see this.

"Aw, did little Luna slip and hurt her ego? Here, let me help you..."

_Spoke too soon. _

I quickly jumped to my feet, whirling around to face Heather, who'd presumably just come from a classroom in the hallway. I made being at the wrong place at the wrong time look like an art form. I just kept my eyes on her, watching her bend down and pick one of the loose pages from my book bag up.

"Thank you, but I'll get it." I muttered my first words to her in a week.

Heather giggled as she held something up to her eyes. I bowed to dust myself off before looking, blood pounding in my head when I realized what she'd found.

"And to think I thought_ your_ eyes were fucked up! What is UP with this guy? Is he some kind of sideshow freak?"

"Give me that!" I snapped, reaching to grab the photo out of her hands without a second thought. I was instantly enraged. _She can say what she wants about me, but I won't allow anyone to talk about him like that!_

She turned away, pointing to the picture of Lysander that I kept in my bag everyday with continued laughter. "Oh Luna, please don't tell me this creature belongs to you; look what he's wearing! I mean, I guess if I ever need any buttons I know who to ask! And is that a bad bleach job or did you drive him gray?"

"Shut up!" I dove again to take it from her, my eyesight blurring with molten anger.

"Oh, you're feisty today! Dragonface must mean a lot to you, hm?"

My rage grew; I could feel it sizzling as sweat varnished every inch of my skin_. _"Give it back this instant!"

She was relentless, and held the photo up and out of my reach. "So does this guy know you're barking up the Nolan tree these days?"

"E-excuse me?!" I spat, balling my fingers into tight fists.

"Whoops, I'm sorry. Let me put it in words you might understand...does your boyfriend here know that his girlfriend is a cheating slut? Does he know that you're screwing the Headmaster's son behind his back?

"That is NOT true! You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about!" I bawled at her, tears of rage streaming down my face, "I love Lysander with all my heart! I'd never want anyone else!" I hated the sound of my weak, broken voice and I hated her words even more.

"Lysander! Even his name is fucked up!"

"Shut up! Shut up right now! Give it back!"

"You know, I almost feel sorry him. He fell out of the ugly tree, hit every branch on the way down and then ended up with you."

I felt myself at the edge of explosion, the point of no return, the end of the earth about to jump off. Never in my life had I been pushed to such intense emotion. I was shaking and could barely manage a breath. I bored my eyes into Heather's, outstretching my palm in her direction. "Heather...now." I managed to hiss through pressed teeth.

Heather's flaring malice faded into a sudden tight-lipped pout. She swung her eyes down at the picture in her hands and blinked, as if to consider what to do with it. "Wow, this really means a lot to you. He must be pretty special."

I almost wanted to give her a round of applause for uttering what could've possibly been the most intelligible words she would ever say.

"Yes Heather, he is. Just please give it back."

Her brows knit, and then her lips curled up into the ugliest sneer I'd ever seen. Her fingers moved suspiciously as they pinched the top of the photo, my heart in my throat.

_Fwwwip_

Something snapped in me...something changed, and when it did the inadequate little girl that I was stepped down, making way for a stronger me that I'd never known was there. Suddenly the only thing that mattered to me was defending Lysander...defending myself. She wasn't going to get away with treating me like this anymore. I was done feeling sorry for myself. _This game of cat and mouse is over._

By the time she'd ripped less than a half an inch I was hurling myself towards her.

My fingers curled and clenched into proper form. My biceps contracted as if I knew what I was doing, but it was all instinct. My jaw tensed, my teeth gnashed. I blinked and felt a bloodshot glare. My senses flared and fortified and I regained consciousness only as my fist smashed into her face.

Things moved in slow motion. Her skin felt porous against my brazen knuckles. The adrenaline was everywhere; I could taste it, see it, and hear it coursing through my veins. Heather's eyes rolled white and then flung back again. She cried out, and I stood paralyzed and gaping when her nose started gushing. Blood poured out down her chin, spewing all over. She reached up and it was on her hands, and in her hair...all I saw was red. I tried to blink it all away, but when I opened my eyes it only got closer. Heather lunged at me, mauling me to the ground beneath her. The red faded to star-specked blackness as the back of my head hit the floor.

Adrenaline kept me wide awake and aware. My hands moved to protect my face as she began working her fists over me. She grunted angrily and all I could do was swat back to block her hooks. She was mostly insufficient, flailing her arms at my head and cracking against my palms instead.

I heard Lysander's voice in my head. _You're stronger than you think you are, you know. _Was I underestimating myself? It ignited a fire, and I reached to claw her face, grabbing her hair and distracting her from the continual wailing. By now there were people swarming; I didn't see them. Heather grasped both of my wrists in her hands and threw them down, lashing at me in full swing again.

I never stopped. I was scratching and swatting and kicking even though Heather's size alone had already won her this fight. She knocked me another good time in the head, this time with a sudden blow of nothing but _thoughts_ from all the minds around me. My walls were destroyed and Heather's inner-voice was the loudest of them all.

'_I hate you! I hate you, I hate you so much you stupid girl! What does she have that I don't? Why does she get a gorgeous boyfriend AND Drew, and I get nothing? I have no one! It's not fair! I'm so miserable and alone and just want these feelings inside my head to go away; I just want them to stop! I hate you Luna Broderick! You make everything so much worse!'_

The screaming echo in my head stopped when Heather suddenly withdrew. I didn't care how or why, I just kept flailing hysterically until I was pulled up from the ground myself. The next thing I knew, Drew was all around me, his arms wrapped tightly around me. _'She's okay, she's safe, I got her...'_

When I opened my lungs to draw air I panicked. He was much too close...his frantic thoughts were in my head even though I could barely hear them. I could feel his breath on my ear, and with a gulp of sporty cologne that wasn't Lysander's I felt the pain and exhaustion that the adrenaline had kept numb. My hands had blood on them, my face smeared with hot tears.

I started fighting Drew's embrace; I had to get away from him.

"Luna, hey! Shh, calm down!" He only tightened his hold on me. Couldn't he feel the heat transferring from his body to mine? _I'm gonna be sick..._

I kept on struggling and caught a glimpse of Heather across the hallway restrained by Mr. Nolan with a crowd surrounding us. I managed to squirm from Drew's grasp, stumbling across the linoleum as he lunged to try and catch me.

Without a word I rushed to photograph that laid face down on the floor and snatched it up. Lysander smiled back at me from the little memory frozen in time, and the whole world just kind of melted away when I counted the colors in his eyes.

* * *

Headmaster Nolan wasn't cracking any jokes in his office.

With Heather he was aggressive; she had a reputation. He was stern with me but spoke a lot softer. _Luna, I know this isn't you, _he said as if he knew me. As if he pitied me. It was that same compassionate glow that his son wore so well.

White, hot adrenaline still pumped in my ears as I sat there gripping the armrests to keep myself from walking out and never looking back. I secretly hoped he'd expel me so I could go home, but knew that it would only make things worse in the end. At that point, father would probably ship me to another country.

Despite the fact that I'd thrown the first punch we were both equally held accountable. The nurses were just as worried about Heather's nose as they were about my ribs, but surprisingly luck was on my side. The worst I'd take from scuffle was some bruises and a headache. Heather's nose bled a good bit, but it wasn't broken. I would've felt terrible if it had been.

It was decided that under no circumstances were we permitted to approach each other at all. Heather was taken out of my English class, and her reign was finally over. Our punishments were lenient, but nevertheless quite inconvenient for me. Heather would wash dishes and clean up after breakfast for a month; I'd do the same for dinner. For a month I'd have to waste my precious time doing that instead of emailing Lysander.

Punching Heather wasn't worth losing a second of time with him, not by a long shot.

By the time our gathering ended the clock on the wall indicated that in twenty more minutes it'd be time for lunch. Heather darted off and disappeared, and when I walked into the lobby my eyes met the deep brown ones I'd grown all too used to seeing in times like these. Drew stood waiting, his hands in his pockets, and offered me a lopsided smile.

"Hey you." He greeted me, shuffling closer.

I was entirely humiliated and brushed my bangs back nervously. "Would you believe me if I told you what happened earlier was uncharacteristic of me?"

The smile twitched on his cheeks. "I figured you weren't a black belt or anything, yeah. I've gotta say I'm pretty disappointed that I missed whatever it was you did to mess up Heather's face, though. Kudos!"

I shrugged, frowning. "I punched her."

"I'm sure she deserved it."

"I..." Arching my brows, I studied the stitching of Drew's boat shoes in dawning realization, "I _punched_ her in the _face_."

"High five!" Drew expressed, thrusting his open palm towards me with a sneer.

I shook my head in distress, "Drew, that isn't good! I'm not a violent person...I don't _punch _people; I won't even step on a bug! I swear I didn't mean it. She just- she took things _too far_ this time, and everything I'd been suppressing, all that built-up frustration...I_ snapped_."

Drew positioned himself in front of me, reaching out to touch my shoulder supportively. "You don't have to explain anything to me; Heather has been asking for it from the start. She's always been that way. Someone had to stand up to her."

He made a valid point, but my guilt rehung itself in different forms. "Two wrongs don't make a right, though..."

"Well then what does? Allowing her to treat you like shit? Luna, what you did today was all_ too _right. You were defending yourself and there isn't anything wrong with that. Don't ever be ashamed of that. I'm proud of you."

I stared down, knotting my fingers together as felt his words strike a chord. He'd made yet another good point, and this time I couldn't find reason to argue it. The fighter inside was pulling that pathetic girl further down to clear for the makings of a new outlook.

"T-thanks, Drew. S-sorry for earlier...for how I acted when you pulled me up. I just..."

"Hey, I get it. Put it behind you; it's over. In the meantime, are you alright?" He craned his neck to look down at me, his eyes widening on mine with sincerity.

Was I alright? No, of course I wasn't. Everything that usually hurt was twice over, and my muscles ached from the fight that was weighing on my mind. My heart was still twisted up in barbed wire, tighter because of everything; the vividly depressing dream I'd had last night and the events of consciousness were heavy. I needed Lysander more than ever.

But still, something felt...almost _alright_. For the first time in a long time I felt honestly good about myself; I stood up to someone I'd feared for over a month. I may not have won the fight, but the more I opened up to justifying it, the better it felt to admit.

"I'm getting by." I glanced up with a shrug.

"Just getting by? That's not gonna cut it. What can I do you make you alright?" Drew's eyes bored into me with concern. I couldn't maintain the tense contact.

I giggled. "I'm afraid there's not much anyone can do to change that."

He hooked his thumbs through the belt loops on his khakis and cocked his head. "Will you let me know if there ever is?

"You do enough just by being so nice to me, Drew. I can't thank you enough."

"You have nothing to thank me for, little rascal." Drew scrunched his face in delight, reaching out to pat my head. "...Got any plans for lunch?"

"Um, I usually lurk the hallways and sneak around avoiding Heather. Now that that's no longer a problem I almost don't know what to do with myself!"

"Perfect, because you're coming with me into town for a coffee! Lord knows you need one." He reached out to take my hand and I recoiled, freezing in the doorway.

He looked back and tilted his head at me. I felt a twinge of apprehension rise in my chest. "Uhm, th-thanks, but I'm actually one of those weird people that don't like coffee..."

He smirked. "Psht, that_ is_ weird. Coffee is my saving grace. So what, you prefer tea then?"

"I guess you could say that tea is my beverage of choice, yes." I peeped without anything better to say.

"Brilliant! Let us go at once, post haste! We'll get you some scones and chips, if you fancy. God save the queen!"

He reached to string me forward and I dodged him, doubled over with laughter at his spontaneous hilarity. "What's with the random British accent?"

"It's tea time! Now, c'mon!"

_Ah, green tea with honey sounds so good right now. Lysander's favorite, too... _

_Would Lysander be okay with this?_

I stopped to consider it just for a moment, memories of my dream flooding back to me. "I'm assuming that leaving campus for tea time is strictly prohibited, correct?" I asked him in thought.

Drew rolled his eyes sarcastically, dropping his head to the side and crossing his arms. "It's only prohibited if you get caught..."

"Ah, yes, I'm quite familiar with that notion. Glory days gone by I'd use it to fed my appetite for risk-taking. My luck isn't what it used to be now though. I'm all too used to getting caught."

"That might be an issue if you were leaving with anyone else, but you seem to forget who you're dealing with. Listen, if for some strange reason we get caught, which we won't, I've got your back."

I've heard lots of voices in my head, but ironically never the little one that's supposed to pop in and tell you when not to do something. Getting caught wasn't even really a concern...It never had been. I mostly worried about if going with Drew for coffee would in any way, shape, or form reflect the wrong impression of my love and loyalty to Lysander.

"You've had a rough day, Luna. It'd do you good to get the hell out of here for a while."

Something was seriously pulling me towards the door.

Lysander trusted me, he did. He had no reason not to. Drew and I were friends, and friends do things. It was just a casual invitation to lunch between _friends_; I'd never go under any other pretense. I wanted more than anything to get off this campus, if only just for a little while. Lysander would encourage me to go if he knew how badly I needed this.

"You had me at tea." I smiled, following him through the door.

* * *

**And yet again, I apologize for taking so long with these updates...I really do. I just got a new job and have been so busy and ughh. I hate it. :( Thankfully I have the next chapter already half-way done, so it really should NOT take me near as long to update again!**

**I can't wait to catch up with all of your amazing fanfics and PMs and such; I should hopefully have some time within the next few days.**

**You have no idea how much I miss you all...I'm serious. You're a huge piece of my heart, and I love you all so, so dearly. It's my wish that as I pursue my dreams as a writer I'll always have you guys there with me; not just as readers and supporters, but as friends.**

**If any of you _ever _need _anything_ at all; someone to talk to, an indifferent opinion, a friend, a beta-reader, etc. let me know. PM me and I'll give you my email address since I can get to replying to those a little quicker.(& I promise I'm not a rapey stalker) I want to be there for you guys the way you all have been here for me.**

**I AM SUCH A SAPPY CHEESEBALL MAKE ME STAAAHP. XD**

**I LOVE YOOOOOU!**


	34. Chapter Thirty Three

**Chapter Thirty Three: Maybe**

* * *

Drew's white Lexus was boyishly disheveled; contradicting how I'd expected such a high-class luxury car's interior to be kept. He was lighthearted in apologizing for the chaotic state of the floorboards and just as long as he didn't mind my feet on his empty Gatorade bottles and crinkled receipts we were in good standing.

He pointed out Byron academy as we passed by. It was quite literally across the street from St. Catherine's. I wished that the tuition wasn't so expensive so Lysander could enroll and be that much closer to me.

From the minute the campus was out of view I felt myself come alive. The sputtering engine, the earth crumbling under the tires below, the trees that lined the road leading us away from St. Catherine's...it was invigorating. I wasn't sure how I'd talk myself into ever going back, especially when we arrived at the coffee shop.

Espresso's was a quaint little café nestled in the heart of whatever town we were in, five minutes from school. I could've sworn that the oxygen away from that place was easier to inhale, and it only got better the minute we walked inside. Spicy cinnamon hit my nostrils and rich mocha swirled with the gentle touch of chai. Drew caught my dreamy daze and smiled. "I love it here. It's just so chill, you know?"

"It's great..." I said in a soft hum.

We walked to the counter and a pretty redhead in an apron set her sights on Drew immediately. He flicked his eyes across her and turned five shades of fluster.

"Welcome to Espresso's, what can I do you for today?" She said, her gaze disregarding me completely and dancing in Drew's. I smirked to myself in observing their behavior when the remnants of a left-over headache pounded unexpectedly, giving way to a foreign train of thoughts in my own.

'_Ah, he's just as gorgeous as ever. I've never seen him come in with a girl before. She's probably his girlfriend...damn. He never talks to me anyway. Oh well. At least I can still appreciate those brown eyes. Guys like him are the reason blazers exist... I hope she knows how lucky she is.' _

The inner-voice of the frecklefaced barista faded out and I smiled at her, aiming to present myself as Drew's just-friend right there and then. The smile didn't last though, and another panging ache temporarily destroyed my ability to tune out. Before I knew it Drew Nolan himself thought loudly in my head.

'_Keep it together, man...come on, don't make a fool of yourself in front of her. Be cool. You can do this...it's not a big deal. It's just ordering coffee...there's nothing to be nervous about! I got this. God, she's so beautiful...'_

My attention was stolen by an out-loud voice this time. "Do you guys need a minute to decide?"

Drew looked down at me as if to urge me to order first if I was ready. He was clearly nervous in front of her. From what I'd heard in his head he requited her feelings tenfold. I voiced my order, buying him time to gather some suave.

"One Grande green tea with extra honey...got it! And for you?" Flustered Freckles bit her lip when swinging her gaze back to Drew.

"Um...uh, a V-Venti caffé' mocha...p-please." He managed, struggling through the same type of stutter he'd adopted last week with Heather. This time, it must've been a result of high nerves from talking to someone he obviously had quite the little crush on.

She smiled to herself as she marked an empty cup. "Venti caffé mocha coming right up!"

Only after being handed our drinks and following Drew cluelessly through the poetic ambiance did I realize that it must've been one of those pay-at-the-end kind of places. We weren't picky, and unanimously decided on a table in the middle.

There was far more honey in my tea than I knew what to do with. I'd ordered extra...an acknowledgment of Lysander, and stirred it all up from the bottom to evenly distribute it.

"Okay, so _real talk_ Luna..." Drew glanced at me from the other side of the table, emptying his third packet of sugar into the coffee in front of him.

I clinked my spoon at the rim of the cup. "Hm? What's real talk?"

"Real talk means that it's time for me to ask you something completely serious and potentially awkward..."

My gut twisted up. "O-oh...um, okay."

Drew smiled a little, his mouth flattening into a thin line as he tilted his head with the words. "I'll never forget the day I met you, Luna Broderick. I've never seen someone so broken. I desperately want to know...what broke you?"

I froze, placing my spoon down on a napkin and Drew was staring, trying to determine whether I was preparing to tell him. I was trying to decide the same. My hands shook and I brought my tea to my lips. When the warm bliss touched my tongue I just wanted to drown in it.

He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry; I know I'm being invasive. You don't have to tell me...I won't blame you if you're not ready to talk about it...but it helps to talk, you know?"

I blinked at him, and his eyes were gently coaxing me to trust them as they blinked back. Rubbing my neck in hesitation I nodded my head. "Y-yeah, no you're right. You're absolutely right. I shouldn't keep everything inside. It's um, kind of a long story."

Drew looked down at his watch and then back to me. "We have a half-hour of lunch to kill and any time after that I'll make something up. Don't sweat it, just go."

I just shook my head and tried to quell the nerves at the back of my throat, but I was ready to talk about it. "You're sure you want to hear it all?"

"Every word, Luna. Start talking."

I took a deep breath, wondering where on earth to start.

"I um...I fell in love."

"...With an evil druglord?" Drew scrunched his nose to remark. He was really good at making sure things never got too somber.

"You'd think so the way my father treats him. But no, he's no bad guy. He's quite the opposite, actually." I sighed, smiling to myself as I felt his name on my tongue. "I guess my story starts with him. Lysander Larkin."

Once I began I couldn't stop. It felt so good, like a thousand pounds was being taken off my chest. I talked and Drew listened. It wasn't that fake kind of listening, either. I could tell he genuinely wanted to hear it. He didn't judge me for any of my choices, he just _listened_, sipping his coffee and letting me ramble to my heart's desire. When I finally finished, giving him an explanation for my brokenness, ribs and heart alike, I picked up my cup and Drew placed his down.

"Geez..." He breathed out, raking his hand through his hair. "I never realized how much you were hurting, Luna. Now I'm _really_ sorry I was such an ass to you that first day."

I shook my head. "You didn't know. Besides, I was being completely impossible. A real...b-word."

Drew giggled at my implication. "Psht, yeah! You were a _total_ bitch..." He smirked deviously at me in an effort to get me to smile, "but you had _every single_ reason to be."

We needed some comic relief before all of the questions and comments I knew Drew must've had, and after we laughed I watched him shift in his seat. "Lysander sounds like quite a guy. I knew someone special had to have given you that pretty ring. Does he email you every day?" He asked, his eyes flicking to my hand.

I looked down at my promise ring and twirled it thoughtlessly around my finger with a smile. "Yeah, we talk as much as we can."

"Does he know how strong you've been here? If so, he must be very proud."

My smile turned up and bit into my cheeks. I kept my eyes down on my ring still. "He makes me strong. Every day he finds a way to build me up and keep me going. He's amazing...my hero."

Drew stirred his coffee aimlessly, flicking his eyes up again. "You miss him a lot, huh?"

_Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry..._

My voice cracked just a bit but I held it together, "I can hardly stand to be away from him any longer...I just don't know how to live without him, and I know it sounds silly but it's actually _killing me_, Drew."

"That doesn't sound silly, it sounds like love. Love is supposed to hurt, but you shouldn't ever let it kill you. Maybe learning to live without him would be a good thing..."

I furrowed my forehead at him. 'Without him' and 'good thing' just didn't go together in my mind.

He shook his head when he caught my confusion and laughed to himself. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that maybe learning not to depend on Lysander so much could help you. Learning to live without him means learning to look out for yourself; that's important. All we really have in the end is ourselves. You're still figuring out who you are...you can't love and understand someone all the way if you don't love and understand yourself. This whole thing will most likely just make your relationship stronger, you know?"

A chill ran up my spine when he finished talking. His words struck me.

I never really knew who I was or what I wanted and when I met Lysander, all of that became him. I was Lysander's girlfriend; I wanted Lysander. I'd never really taken the time to dig deeper. Being away from him, even though I hated it, was forcing me to uncover a part of myself that I'd never known. A stronger, more resilient Luna would come from this, and learning to appreciate _every single moment _with Lysander would undoubtedly strengthen us yet.

"You're right, Drew." I heard myself blurt.

He was laughing again. "I act like I know what I'm talking about, but I actually don't. I have no idea what you're going through, or how people think, or how relationships work...I've never had a girlfriend in my life; the two friends I do have at Byron I made in kindergarten. You're the first friend I've made that I didn't need to entice with Legos and apple juice first."

I couldn't imagine a single reason why Drew would have a hard time making friends, or finding a girlfriend for that matter, judging how taken the barista was with him. Even_ I_ couldn't deny that Drew was easy on the eyes, and on top of that he was funny, smart, and one of the nicest people I'd ever met.

"That's just absurd, I'm sure you have a lot more people who consider you a friend than you'd think...and you just haven't found the right girl yet! It's not unusual; Lysander and I had never been with anyone before each other. She'll come around; probably when you least expect it!"

Drew wore a trying smile. "You're too sweet. You'd understand why I don't have many friends if you knew how I _really_ was."

"How you really are? You're an amazing person, Drew. I honestly can't see how anyone could think otherwise."

His eyes met mine as he picked his head off the palm he'd been resting it on, his face flushing pale. "Y-you think that? About..._me_?"

"After all you've done for me? Absolutely. I don't know why you're surprised!" I smirked, turning my head when I noticed Drew rip his eyes away and jump.

"How is everything? Would you like me to go ahead and get your complimentary refills?" The barista stood before us, seeming to have appeared out of thin air.

"That would be great, thank you!" I smiled as I handed my cup to her. Drew could barely even look as he held out his, muttering a choppy thank you under his breath.

As she walked away he flicked his eyes to me and I smiled, noticing that his face was a fierce red. He picked his gaze up past my head where the barista had walked off just a moment prior, presumably to appreciate the sight of her a little longer.

I turned to see and the swift motion rang in another powerful pang from the headache at the core. My head throbbed at first, fading away when I as became distracted by Drew's thoughts.

'_I wonder if she knows how beautiful her eyes are, especially against her hair. Does she know that every time she smiles it knocks the wind out of me like a punch to the stomach? Or how cute she is when pushes her lips together, and how bad I want to kiss them? She's perfect. I'd do anything to tell her how much I love just being around her. I wish I could tell her how she makes me feel, but I can't. I'll never tell her, because..."_

"Luna, are you okay?"

I picked my head up out of my palms to look at Drew, his voice snapping through his thoughts and allowing me to tune him out again. "Just a headache...I get them a lot."

"Want me to run across the street to the store and get you some Ibuprofen?"

I shook my head. "No, no it's not that bad. Thank you, though." The headache was fizzing in and out; I could manage. I didn't want Drew to leave just to get me something and miss any time with the girl he liked so much.

_Speak of the devil._

"Here's your tea..." The barista announced from the side of our table, leaning to hand me my cup as I thanked her. "And your caffé mocha! Anything else I can do for you?"

"I'm all set, thank you!"

She turned specifically to ask Drew, whose face was as red as the hair on her head.

"Nu-no thanks." He spat, never looking at her. Her lips wilted as she turned away from us, and Drew pushed his palms across his face with a groaning sigh. "I never fail to make myself look like a complete idiot."

"You're not an idiot!"

He picked his head up, tilting it to the side with a sigh. "C'mon Luna, don't tell me you've never noticed my little speak impediment..."

"It's not a speech impediment! So what if you stammer when you're nervous? Heather could make a drill sergeant nervous, and I completely understand about that pretty girl. You've got a thing for her, don't you?" I smirked, poking Drew in the shoulder.

He blinked, his smile curling up slowly into his cheeks before he cracked with laughter, stifling it into his hands. "Oh Luna, bless your heart."

"What's so funny? She likes you too, you know! I can tell. She can't keep her eyes off you!"

Drew's shoulders shook with more laughter as he cocked his eyebrows. "The barista!?"

"Yes! The one that took our orders, you know the one! You should talk to her..."

"Ha, talk to her. That'd be a sight." He said to himself with a smirk.

"I know you're shy. I used to be really shy too, but if you – "

"It's a little more complicated than being shy, Luna..." Drew cut me off to say, reaching back to scratch his neck.

"I get it, she's intimidating! But trust me; she'd love it if you talked to her. I'm sure of it!"

He sighed, swinging his gaze over to the counter at her and then back to me with a shrug. "Appearance has nothing to with the fact that I'd be a mess talking to her or anyone else. It's not because I'm into her...she's honestly not even really my type."

"Wh-what?" I furrowed my brow to ask. What he said didn't line up at all with his thoughts.

Drew threw his head to the side, "Sorry to disappoint you, Cupid. I mean yeah, don't get me wrong, she's definitely cute; it's just...I don't know. She's just not my type."

"Come on Drew, just look at her pretty red hair!"

He looked over again and shrugged just the same. "Yeah, it's pretty I guess. It'd be prettier if it were lighter...more goldish."

_Wait, what?_

"I dunno, maybe I have a soft spot for blondes."

_...No._

He looked up nonchalantly and saw my unease, sitting up at once and holding his hands out. "Nu-not like yours or anything!"

_His thoughts... Were they about the barista?_

"Not that your hair isn't pretty! It's _gorgeous_! I-I mean, it's nice and all...what I meant was..."

_Or were they about..._

"Did I say blondes? I meant brunettes! Takes one to know one, right?"

_Drew doesn't have feelings for me...does he?_

"What color is Lysander's hair?" Drew spewed randomly. I perked up at the mention of his name.

"Huh?"

"Lysander's hair...wh-what color is it? What does he um, look like?"

_Was this him changing the subject?_

Drew was totally freaking out, chomping on his lip and anxiously awaiting my reply. Before he asphyxiated himself I laughed nervously.

"He's um, he's one of a kind..." I snickered, turning to my bag and running far away from the idea of Drew's thoughts; straight to my safe haven. I found the picture that had caused so much trouble earlier and handed it to Drew.

"Whoa, I see what you mean. Is that natural, or does he dye it?" Drew studied the picture with a straight face.

"He dyes the tips to offset the paleness...cuts it himself, too. But yeah, it's naturally silver like that."

"It looks really cool, all asymmetrical and stuff. And his eyes...they're badass. Those aren't contacts?"

I smiled as he handed the picture back. "They're all too real." I muttered, staring into the eyes in the picture. "I love them."

Drew just kind of nodded his head with a smile as I placed the photo back in between the pages of one of my notebooks. At that same moment the fluttery voice of the barista came into earshot.

"Is there anything else I can get you before I give you your check?" She asked sweetly, eyeing Drew from the corners.

He looked up at her with a twitchy grin, shaking his head a little too fast.

"No thanks, you've been great!" I told her.

She giggled with the nod of her head. "Thank you! Here you go."

Drew gulped as he reached for the check. I dug through my bag for a wallet that I knew was there but hadn't used in far too long, and Drew produced a plastic card, sticking it in the leather pocket of the check folder and handing it back.

"I'll reimburse you as soon as I find my Houdini of a wallet...I swear it just vanishes into thin air whenever I need it. It's a very convincing illusion."

"I got it, silly. Go ahead and let that wallet live out its dream of being a magician for now."

"No, I can't..." I pouted, my hand relentlessly touching every single item except for that stupid wallet.

"So stubborn..." He reached to poke my forehead playfully, smiling into my eyes and then shaking his stare away to smirk at the ground. "Good luck getting me to take your money. You won't, unless you plan on tucking it in the casket at my funeral eighty years from now." He teased.

"But you're in no position to pay for me!"

"Your argument is invalid. I'm in every position to pay."

"How so?" I crossed my arms and skewed my mouth cynically to wait for his response.

Drew blew a piece of hair out of his eyes and sighed. "In the world I come from coffee is something you have brought up to your room when you wake up...it's not a splurge, it's just handed to you. My father's most recent splurge? Dinosaur bones. I wish I was kidding, but I'm not. It's nothing but a privilege for me to do the same on a cup of tea, especially for you, Luna. In fact it's the least I could do for you..."

"D-did you say...dinosaur bones?"

He bit his lip in laughter. "There is a huge hundred million year-old Stegosaurus in my house. My dad has nothing better to spend his money on, I guess. It's kind of nauseating."

I couldn't stop giggling, and Drew smiled as he watched me. "I didn't realize you were _that_ rich, Drew! Should I be referring to you as Master Nolan or something?"

Drew shook his head. "_I'm_ not rich. I've never earned a nickel in my life; I'm not proud of that, either. My parents are the rich ones."

"I guess owning two private schools must rake in some money. I just didn't think it was splurge-on-dinosaur-bones kind of money."

"The schools help, I guess. They've practically been in the family since those dinosaur bones were still walking around. Both of my parents are from old money...Dad does the Headmaster thing because he's obligated to, or something. Mom hasn't worked a day in her life. Her maiden name is Lestelle."

"Lestelle...like the shampoo?"

"_And_ a fabulous array of other overpriced beauty essentials!" He stuck two sarcastic thumbs in the air and winked, rolling his eyes.

"Oh my god, really? That's like, a multi-billion dollar corporation, Drew."

Drew just kind of shrugged sheepishly as we wordlessly made the decision to move from the café to back to his car. After I got settled in the passenger's seat I giggled to myself and Drew looked over at me.

"Your family owns Lestelle...wow. That must be why you have such great hair!" I teased.

He brought his hand away from the ignition, dropping his car keys in his lap and raising a hand to smooth his shiny, wispy hair dramatically."Ah yes, Lestelle simply never disappoints. Feel how soft it is..."

I reached to playfully tug his hair when he swung it in my face. It was quite possibly the softest matter known to man. "That can't be from Lestelle products..."

He snickered. "You caught me. Apparently Lestelle isn't good enough or something. How's that for irony? My mom drags me every few months to who she claims is the genius behind Jon Bon Jovi's luscious locks...and yes, she reminds me every time as if I care. It's nauseating."

"Gosh, sounds like it. I just go wherever my father has a coupon!"

"Coupons are Greek to me. I got dealt an unfair hand of cards..."

"Unfair? You mean fortunate, right?" I gasped.

"Well of course I'm fortunate, but I never did anything to deserve my silver spoon. I certainly can't complain; I've had everything in life handed to me. I don't know how to do anything for myself, and I've lived eighteen years like that while everyone else works their tails off for not even a splinter of what I have access to. It's not fair. In fact, it pisses me off. My big sister Kate and I are all about volunteering and donating whenever we can, but I wish I could do more."

"It's already more that you've broken away from that blueblood stereotype..." I turned to fasten my seatbelt as Drew stuck his keys in and coaxed his car to life. Learning so much about him was surprisingly insightful. He wasn't just some spoiled golden boy; he was a lot deeper than that.

He kept his eyes on the road and continued talking as we made our way back to the school.

"My family isn't as snobby as most of the upper-class. We joke around a lot, go camping, get dirty and stuff. My sister Kate is awesome; I guess she's where I really get it from. She's a philanthropist and puts her silver spoon to good use. She met her husband Emmett on a Peace Corps trip to frickin' Uganda; how cool is that?"

I smiled. "That's really romantic..."

"I know, right? They were meant to be or something. They came back together, got married, and had their son Jax not too long after. They're a really cute little family."

"You're an uncle?!"

Drew smirked, "Yeah! Being an uncle is awesome; all the fun of having a toddler around without having to deal with any of the gross parent stuff. They'll raise him right. He'll never go without, but still learn to take care of himself; make his own way in the world. If science someday comes up with a way that I can asexually make carbon copies of myself, I'll raise my kids the same way."

That last part threw me off a bit, and I snorted a giggle. "Wh-what was that about asexual carbon copies of yourself?"

Drew laughed along with me and scratched his neck. "Since I refuse to accept gold-diggers, I've come to accept the fact that I'm destined to be forever alone. I'll never actually have kids. I guess I could adopt a bunch from a third-world country. That'd be nice."

He kept a light nature, but my smile faded and I shook my head. "Drew, you're eighteen! You're not going to be forever alone!"

He rolled his eyes as we came up to the school. "I definitely am. Girls don't talk to me."

"You go to an all-boy's school!"

His face flared up as he laughed. "You see how much time I spend away from there. I couldn't talk back to them anyway, even if they did try."

"Then what am I, chopped liver? I'm a girl. And look, we're talking right now!"

Before I knew it we were back at St. Catherine's, and Drew pulled his car into a parking spot in the back. "You're different; the only girl that's ever talked to me. Like, ever."

I fluttered my eyelashes and repositioned myself to face him in my seat. "I just don't get it. Why? You've always talked to me just fine. Why don't you think you can talk to other girls?"

He sighed, turning his car off and hanging his head down, his hair flopping around his face like a veil around his red cheeks.

"I have social anxiety disorder." He muttered. I could just barely make it out, but I heard him.

I looked back up to him and tilted my head. "What?"

He snapped his face back to me and spoke louder. "I have social anxiety disorder!"

I just kind of blinked, not sure what to say, and he sighed as he dropped his eyes to his lap.

"I couldn't tell you why, but people scare me. New faces, crowds, public speaking...I go to St. Catherine's to cool off in my dad's office after I have a panic attack; my medication doesn't always work."

"But you're so...and on my first day you – " I was stammering.

"I know. The way you snarled at me was like you wanted to rip my spine out with your teeth." He chuckled, and I saw him remembering our first encounter. "You should've had me in a ball on the floor gasping for air...but you didn't scare me. I talked to you like I'd known you my whole life; didn't even realize I was doing it until I left, and I don't know why."

My face twisted up in thought. "I'm pretty sure I was trying to scare you, too."

"Maybe that's why you didn't. Maybe it's because you weren't fake with me like everyone else is. Everyone, for as long as I can remember has put me on this pedestal. I'm the headmaster's son, so no one goes around snarling at me like that. No one makes fun of me when I stutter, or when I freak out in the halls in front of everyone. No one says a word about my exemptions from giving speeches or presenting projects in class, but they would if I wasn't who I am. It's like a part of me knows what they're thinking when they look at me, and yet I find the fact that I _can't _see their thoughts absolutely terrifying."

"It's not all it's cracked up to be, I promise. Most people's thoughts are a lot more harmless than you'd think." I just completely blurted, my lower lip hanging down with that last word. _Oh my god. Did I seriously just say that out loud?_

Drew was laughing at me. "Right, because you can hear people's thoughts?"

"What?! Nu-no! That's...that's ridiculous, Drew. People can't hear thoughts! I'm just uh...good at reading people. I guess." I spewed words and waved my hands at him, my face growing hot.

"Chill out, weirdo. I was just kidding." He smirked playfully, easing my worries completely. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I never would've guessed you had a problem like that, Drew. Honestly; it's so strange trying to picture you as anything but the charismatic you that I know."

"God, there's an adjective I never thought I'd hear anyone use to describe me. Now do you see why I don't have friends? I can't talk to anyone except for my family, and people I've known for a while. And you."

I smiled warmly at him, blinking until I found the words to say. "Well, for whatever reason you can, I'm glad. I'm glad I don't scare you, and I'm glad you're my _friend._"

Drew stared at me longer than a moment, pulling his arms around me for a hug.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." He mumbled into my shoulder. I was frozen and a little uneasy, but I saw what Drew meant by hugging me and it wasn't anything to be wary of. He was hugging me as friends do, and so I hugged him back.

"Thank _you_, Drew." I whispered without even really meaning to.

He pulled away, keeping on hand on my shoulder as he cocked his lip into a half-smile. "For what?"

"I could ask you the same question..." I smiled warmly as he recoiled his arms and laid them in his lap.

"For being the most sincere person I've ever met. For understanding me like no one ever has. For accepting me. For being so brave and facing your fears...and for teaching me how to hopefully someday do the same." He switched his gaze from me to the floorboard as he spoke.

"You say you saw me break when I got here...thank you for helping me glue the pieces back together, Drew."

* * *

When I finally got back to my room my fingers typed thousands of words in a matter of seconds. I didn't even realize I was crying until I pressed send. So many conflicting emotions were swirling and pounding and cracking against the inside of my skull; it was overwhelming. All I wanted was Lysander. I needed his arms around me so badly and no matter what I did he just couldn't be there to do that for me.

I collapsed on my bed and cried into my pillow as I waited for him to reply.

**From: Lysander Larkin  
To: Luna Broderick  
Sent: Tues, Feb 26, 2013 3:24 pm  
Subject: Re: My eventful day**

_I'm having a hard time grasping everything you just told me. First things first, you're absolutely certain you're alright? _

_Oh Lunabelle, of course I'm not angry with you! I could never be angry with you...especially not for defending yourself! _

_...However, to call my feelings 'mixed' would be an understatement. _

_On one hand, as much as I cannot imagine my sweet girl even harming a fly let alone throwing a punch, I can't say I'm entirely surprised. You're incredibly headstrong and have a spark in you that I've always known was there. You are a fighter, whether you believe it or not. _

_I can't help but to be proud and concerned at the same time. I am truly beside myself with worry about the trauma your body is continuing to endure. It pains every inch of me to think of the unspeakable things you've suffered in the last two months. If I could take it all away and put it on myself I would in a heartbeat._

_Despite all of that, I'm gleaming with pride. God, I'm so proud of you, Luna. It may sound silly, as if I'm encouraging you to punch classmates in the nose, but it's not that at all. I tend to underestimate your strength almost as much as you do. Believe it or not, it's incredibly comforting to know that you possess the ability to defend yourself when need be. I hate to bring it up, but I saw it that night in the alleyway...you simply refused to go down without a fight. We haven't talked about it, but the thought of what could have happened that night haunts me every single day and as much as I don't want you to have to relive it, I feel as though now is a perfect time to address it._

_The truth is, if I hadn't made it to you, those degenerate bastards would've taken you from me. I saw their plans and I regret not destroying them when I had the chance. I know...that isn't me. I get extremely upset thinking about it, and I apologize for the needless rant. The point is, if I hadn't stopped them, I know you would've fought until your last breath._

_I'm just so proud of you for never going down without putting up that fight. That's my girl :) Don't you ever stop being as amazing as you are._

_Luna, are you quite certain now that Heather has been deterred from approaching you again? Because I am as serious as a heart attack when I say that I'm doing everything in my power not to come to St. Catherine's to deter her myself. I'm serious Luna. She cannot push me like this anymore or before I know it I'll be standing outside your school with a vendetta, which as we know never turns out good for anyone._

_I know you don't ever mean it, but please try to stay out of harm's way for me from now on. _

_With that being said, I am not mad at you, but I must ask you to never under any circumstances leave the campus again with anyone, __**especially Drew.**__ It is my sincerest hope that I am not coming off as controlling. I do not wish to control you...I love your spirit and you know that. :)_

_My intention is only to maintain your utmost safety while you are too far for me to protect. I hope you understand._

_I know you. You make friends effortlessly, and everyone you meet falls in love with you. I know and trust you with all of my heart; it's the fact that I do not know Drew that scares me to death. I don't trust him, and I don't believe you've ever told me whether or not I should. I've asked you a few times about the thoughts in his head, but I assume you've read over the question unaware of how important it is for me to know. _

_He could've hurt you, Luna. He could've brought you someplace and hurt you and if I think about what could've happened anymore I might just break. We are incredibly fortunate that as of now, Drew still seems to be a good person. It's not as if I don't appreciate his efforts...I know you probably desperately needed to get off campus, and I can't assume the worst. In reality, I'm sure Drew just took your feelings into consideration and offered to do something nice for a friend. Still, as we know better than anyone sometimes what people say and what people think are two totally different entities, which is why I need you to always use your best judgment, never let his secret thoughts lay dormant, and use the gift we've been given to keep yourself safe for me. _

_All I care about in this world is you, my Lunabelle, and keeping you safe is the reason I feel as though I've been put on this Earth and given these abilities that I have. If anything were to ever happen to you, I'd die. First though, whoever responsible would face a truly horrifying wrath. I simply cannot lose you. It can't happen, ever, and in promising to love you until forever I will also guarantee that as long as I live, no harm will ever come to you again. __I miss you Luna. I miss you so, so terribly. _

_I love you._

_Lysander_

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I finished Lysander's email, and my fingers jumped to tell him that he had nothing in the world to worry about, with me _or_ Drew. Lysander wanted to know what I saw in Drew's head and I told him that there wasn't much and from what I could see, he was the genuine article. I might've left out a few details.

They were details I didn't feel I needed to worry Lysander with, though. Either way, those details meant absolutely nothing to me. Drew was my friend, _and that was it._

* * *

**Gaaaaaah :( Yet again, I am sososososo sorry this took me so long. You have literally no idea how much I miss you all and miss writing and updating regularly. I'm juggling a billion things at once, but I promise you that I have NOT forgotten you or this story, and I will without a shadow of a doubt see it to the end. I love you all SO much, and I'm sorry that I'm behind on reading/reviewing your stuff and/or replying to PMs and reviews, but I hope you know how much I appreciate every single thing you guys do and say. I love you with everything, from the bottom of my heart! **

**P.S- I apologize for the Drew-heavy chapters, but like I said before, Lysander is right around the corner! :D He'll be back sooner than you think. Oh, and I also apologize for the probable abundance of silly grammatical errors and what not. As soon as I finished this chapter I just wanted to get it up for you guys so badly and might have rushed a little (a lot) with the proofreading! **

**XOXO**

**-exactlyamanda**


End file.
